Megamorphs: Enter The Fantastic
by Theo Gary
Summary: The Yeerks have discovered the existence of Hogwarts, and its up to the Animorphs and three familiar young wizards to save the world yet again. AnimprphsHarry Potter crossover. Please Read and Review. New Chapter is up!
1. A Bizzarre Attack

**Notes **- Well now, This chapter seems okay. If I change anything it'll be small. But the new setup is that this will take place for Harry and Co. Fifth Year. I don't own HP or Animorphs or any of their characters/places, etc... 

**Tobias**

(Rachel! Behind you!) I shouted. The grizzly bear turned and swatted the charging Hork Bajir like a fly. What had started out as a simple raid on a Sharing facility was quickly turning into a rout.

I extended my talons and dive bombed another Hork Bajir. "Arrrgh!" It screamed, clutching at its eyes.

I saw Jake in his tiger morph slashing with his remaining front paw. The other paw lay a few feet away. A gorilla, Marco, squeezed a Taxxon 'til it popped like an overcooked hotdog. Cassie in her wolf morph tore out a Hork Bajir's throat. Fwwapp! Fwwapp! I saw one Hork Bajir lose its head and a Taxxon lose its insides to Ax's deadly Andalite tail blade.

By the way, my name is Tobias. I'm part of the insane little group which calls itself the Animorphs. Who are we? We are four teenage kids, one red tailed hawk, and an alien whose purpose is to delay the Yeerk invasion of Earth until the Andalite fleet makes time in its busy schedule to come and save our butts. There's Jake, our sort of leader, Rachel, beautiful, but fierce, Cassie, the animal lover, Marco, the clown of the group, Ax, or Aximilli Esgarrouth Isthill, our resident alien, and me, bird boy.

You're probably a bit confused right now. Let me explain. The Yeerks are a species of parasitic slug who crawl through a person's ear canal and into the brain. They then wrap themselves around the brain and take total and complete control of that person. They started out by taking the Gedds. From there, they moved on to the Hork Bajir, and then, the Taxxons. Now, they have set their sights on Humanity. An Andalite ship came to Earth to stop them, but they were beat: bad. Before then, we were just five blissfully ignorant teenagers. One night, we took a shortcut home from the mall through an abandoned construction site. There, we met the dying Andalite war hero, Prince Elfangor, who later turned out to be my father. Long story, don't ask. Anyways, he warned us of the Yeerks and gave us a weapon to fight back. That weapon is the morphing ability, the power to become any animal we can touch. But that power comes at a terrible price. Stay more than two hours at a time in any one morph, and you become what the Andalites call a _nothlit, _a person trapped forever in a morph. I was the first one to pay this price. On our first mission, I was trapped as a red tailed hawk. I recently got back my ability to morph, thanks to a godlike being called the Elimist, but I'm still a hawk. Probably always will be, unless I choose to stay in my Human morph, but then, I would lose my ability to fight. I would again be a _nothlit_. And somehow, I don't think the Elimist would help me again. He has this thing about not meddling too much. After Elfangor gave us the power, we all witnessed his murder at the hands of Visser 3, the only Yeerk to ever take control of an Andalite host. Since that night, we have fought the Yeerks with our morphing ability. Harassing them, and, perhaps, on occasion, doing some serious damage. But we are losing. The invasion marches on. Every day, more and more humans are infested. So, that's what we were doing at the facility, harassing the Yeerks.

(Jake, man, this is bad. We have to pull out. I can hear more Hork Bajir coming.) I said. The tiger nodded, a very funny thing to see.

(Tobias is right. Everyone retreat.) We turned and ran through the door.

We made it outside into the parking lot. Standing in our way was a very strangely dressed kid. He was wearing green robes and a hooded black cloak that concealed his face. He was pointing a short wooden stick at us

(What's he think he's gonna do with that, poke our eyes out?) Marco, of course.

The kid grinned manically. "_Expeliamus!_" he shouted. There was a bright flash and I found myself flying backwards. It felt like a freight train had slammed into me. I hit the pavement hard. I looked up. The kid was standing over me. "Now, you die, Andalite." he said in a British accent. It's weird, but my first thought wasn't _'I'm going to die'_. It was, _'Huh, a British Controller_. _That's something new'._ Just goes to show how crazy my life is. The kid raised the stick. "_Incendio!_" A tongue of flame stabbed towards me. At the last second, a blue hand grabbed hold of my talon and hauled me out of the way. Fwwapp! The kid fell to the ground, unconscious.

(Thanks, Ax man.) I said.

(Perhaps I should extinguish you before you thank me.)

I looked at my wing. The tip was on fire. (Yahhh!) I screamed. Ax calmly slapped the fire until it was put out.

(Okay, everyone get to the woods and demorph, then morph into birds. We'll meet back at Cassie's barn.) said Jake.

(What in the world was that thing that kid had? Is it a new Yeerk weapon? It sent me, a grizzly bear, flying!) Raged Rachel once we were in the air.

(I do not believe it was a weapon of Yeerk design. It had no mechanical devices attached to it.) said Ax.

(What was that the kid was saying? Was that some alien language?) I asked.

(No, it was Latin. I had to take it last year, so I recognized some of the words.) answered Cassie.

(So, we've got a Latin speaking British kid with a stick that can shoot flames and knock us like rag dolls. Is it just me, or has this fight just gotten a lot more bizarre?) asked Marco.

(Tobias, go get Erek. He might know something about this.) said Jake.

I veered off towards the house of Erek King, a very old android. Another long story. I was forced to agree with Marco. Whatever it was the Yeerks had, it could only spell bad news for us.


	2. Disturbing Revalations

**Notes **- Not much will be changes here. Just a few odds and ends.****

**Rachel**

I was one seriously ticked off girl. It's no secret that I don't like losing a fight. But losing a fight when we're outnumbered ten to one, I can accept. What I can't accept is losing a fight to a kid with a stick. We were all in Cassie's barn, a.k.a., the Wildlife Rehabilitation clinic. Marco was sitting on a bale of hay, Jake was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, Ax was standing to one side in his human morph, and Cassie was changing a bandage on an injured golden eagle. Me, I was pacing the barn in stomps. Finally, Tobias flew in through the open hay loft, and Erek walked through the door.

"Hello, everyone." he said. "Tobias briefed me on what happened. I'm afraid the explanation is pretty dire. You're all going to find it very, very hard to believe."

"Oh puhleeze. The pacifist, doggie loving android who helped to build the pyramids is afraid we're going to find something hard to believe?" said Marco.

Erek smiled and continued. "The Yeerks feel that they are well entrenched enough here that they can start spreading the Sharing internationally, and they're first target is England. Fortunately, since they still need most of they're resources here, it's going to stay pretty small for now. Anyways, about a week ago, they got a kid to be a Voluntary Controller. He told them that he had something they might want. So, they infested him and discovered within him, some very strange powers. Nothing in his physiology explained it, but within his mind was the answer. Ladies and gentlemen, the Yeerks have infested a wizard."

We just stared. What Erek had told us just wasn't possible.

"You're kidding, right? I mean come on, a wizard? As in a Gandalf, Merlin wizard? As in a wave my wand, and, alakazam! wizard?" asked Marco.

"I told you that you wouldn't believe me." said Erek.

"What are these wizards?" asked Ax quizzically.

We all shifted uncomfortably. Human myths tend to sound a bit stupid to aliens, especially to the utterly logical and scientific Andalites.

Jake scratched his head. "Ummm... well... They're...they're old human mythological characters. Supposedly, they had... well... magical powers. But it's not possible that they're real."

"A few years ago, wouldn't you have said the same about aliens from outer space?" We had to admit, the android had us there. "Just think about it, how did the kid at the Community Center attack you?" asked Erek.

I shrugged. "He had some weapon disguised as a stick. A really powerful one at that."

"And how did it work?" asked Erek.

"He said something in Latin and it shot out fire and some sort of energy bolt."

Erek smiled and waited for someone to figure it out.

Jake snapped his fingers. "Of course, the stick! It wasn't some new Yeerk weapon. Marco said it a minute ago. It must have been a magic wand."

"There's more. Apparently, all over the world, there are schools of magic, designed to train those born with magical ability. They're hidden from normal people. People who happen across it walking find only some old ruins that always seem to look totally uninteresting. Planes and other craft that get to close suddenly find themselves hopelessly enveloped in clouds that baffle even the most advanced sensor technology. The boy goes to one of these schools, and now the Yeerks know its location. He was only a student, and not even an advanced one at that. I don't have to tell you what will happen if they manage to infest a fully trained adult wizard." said Erek.

Jake looked grim. "They have to be warned. Erek, can the Chee in England get word to this school?"

"That's the problem. Only Wizards and witches are allowed to enter. But, we have a plan. See, their school year starts in two weeks. We believe that if someone was smuggled into a student's luggage, they could make it in. But it has to be someone small. Someone very small. Someone small enough that they wouldn't be seen by anyone."

Marco groaned. "Oh man, I don't like where this is going."

"We'll do it." I said.

"Shock me, shock me, shock me, Rachel's ready to go." said Marco.

I shot him a withering glare and looked back at Erek. "Look, we can go to England, morph something small, and get in some kid's suitcase. How hard can it be?"

Jake nodded. "It's the only way. Erek, we'll need the Chee to cover for us while we're gone. I hate to even ask this, but can you hook us up with a few airline tickets? I wouldn't even think of asking you to steal for us, but I'm sure the flight to England is alot more than two hours and it'll be hard for all of us to demorph on the plane. As it is, Ax and Tobias will have to."

Erek nodded. "Sure. One of us works for British Airways. He'll get the tickets for you."

Marco spoke in a faux British accent. "Oh jolly good, we're going to merry old England to see the Queen. Perhaps she'll invite us over for a spot of tea."

"Who is this Queen and why would she want to spot tea?" inquired Ax. Nobody answered him.

"Right, so spend time with you're families, and don't forget to update your Chee on things that are happening in your life." said Jake a little too briskly. Marco shot me and Cassie a wry smile. We all knew; It's the way Jake gets when we're about to go on a dangerous mission.

Cassie shook her head. "England. I've always wanted to go there...only I was hoping it would be in more of a vacational capacity. So, Erek, what's this school called, anyways?"

"It's called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

****

Jake

"I'm home!" I shouted. I walked in the door and nearly ran into Tom who was coming down the stairs with two suitcases.

"Hey, watch it, midget!" he said. It was exactly what Tom would have said, only I knew this wasn't him speaking. A master puppeteer was pulling his strings. Tom, like so many others is a Controller; A Yeerk using a host body as his personal puppet.

"Whoa, where's the fire?" I asked. "And what are you doing with suitcases?"

Tom set his bags down and grabbed a Coke from the fridge. "Me and some of the high-ups are going to Europe for a few weeks to promote the Sharing opening over there. This is gonna be huge. Mister Visser himself is coming."

I felt a chill go up my spine. "What country in Europe?" I asked, even though I knew the answer.

"England. How cool is that? I mean, we're going to the motherland. It's gonna be awesome. I would have asked you if you wanted to go, but they want it to be a members-only thing. If you were a member...But oh well. That's old news. Listen, I gotta go. My plane leaves in two hours." he said.

I swallowed hard. "Well, have a good time." I ran up the stairs and grabbed the phone. I called Cassie.

It rang twice. "Hello?"

"Cassie, hey, it's Jake."

There was a moment of silence. "Hey, what's up, Jake?"

"Not much. Tom just left for a Sharing trip to England. He mentioned that guy Mr. Visser might be going."

See, we have to be careful what we say over the phone. We never know who might be listening in, so we speak in code.

Another moment of silence. When she spoke, I could hear her voice shake. "Oh, that's cool. Hey, are our plans still on for next week?" she asked.

"Yeah. We'll just have to change a few things since Tom'll be gone. Why don't you call Rachel? I'll tell Marco and Erek what's up."

"Okay, later, Jake."

I hung up the phone and took a deep breath to steady my nerves. It didn't exactly work. We knew this mission would be dangerous, but now, it was ten times more so.


	3. Of Beans and Toads

**Notes** - More smallish changes this chapter. Next chapter is where it's gonna start changing more.

**Marco**

Two weeks later, we were on the plane headed for England. The Chee got us first class seats. I guess they figured if they were sending us on a mission of almost certain death, they could at least make us comfortable. I kind of felt bad about not paying for the tickets...that is until they served me my filet mignon.

"Okay, I am definitely never going back to coach." I said.

Rachel sighed."They would stick me next to you, wouldn't they?"

"Oh come on, don't you like sitting next to incredibly cute and hilariously funny guys?" I teased.

"Sure I do. If you see one, be sure to point him out."

I laughed. Sure, it was a joke at my own expense, but I had to admit, it was funny.

The plane ride went off without a hitch. Nobody even noticed that Ax and Tobias had to get up and use the bathroom every couple of hours.

To make the greatness of the flight complete, the in-flight movie was The Phantom Menace. I have seen it more times than I can count, but hey, as I've said before, cool is cool. And Star Wars is definitely cool. Now I know, my life is one big Sci-Fi story, but all that means is that I have more need for escapism than the average person. I could hear Jake in front of us trying to explain the movie to Ax. I'm still not sure if the Andalite completely got it.

Finally, the plane landed and we got off. Waiting at the gate was a man holding a sign with our names on it. As we approached him, the air shimmered, and he suddenly changed into an ivory colored Android. We knew that anyone observing would see and hear nothing out of the ordinary thanks to the Chee's holographic technology.

"Ah, you must be the Animorphs." he said, sounding for all the world like a British butler. "Erek asked me to pick you up. My name is Geoffrey. We have a car waiting for you. If you would, follow me, please."

We all piled into a limo waiting outside. Geoffrey briefed us on the way. "We've done some careful spying, and have managed to find some obvious wizards. It was actually easy once we knew wok for. Through them, we've learned the way into Hogwarts. In King's Cross train station, there is a hidden doorway between platforms nine and ten which can only be accessed by Wizards. It leads to a platform nine and three quarters. From there, they board a train which takes them to the school. The train will start boarding this afternoon. I suggest you morph to insects and wait in the area between the platforms until a Wizard approaches. Once you're on the train, just find a place to demorph and enjoy the ride."

"Yeah, what could go wrong?" I muttered.

The limo dropped us off at the train station and Geoffrey offered us a last good luck before driving off. I hate it when people wish me good luck. It usually means I'm going to need it.

We morphed to fly in the bathroom near platform ten.. Unfortunately, someone had just changed a baby's soiled diaper in there, and I wasn't able to get control of the fly brain quick enough to stop from taking a big proboscis full of baby gravy. The worst part is, to the fly, it tasted kinda good.

By some miracle, we actually managed to all find the right place. We only had to wait about twenty minutes before someone came, but for a fly, those twenty minutes seemed like an eternity. Flies are just not made to sit in one spot. But, we managed.

I heard an old woman's voice below me. "I swear, Neville Longbottom, you would lose your head if it wasn't attached. Come on! Place is packed with Muggles, of course. Quickly, now! The Hogwarts express leaves in five minutes!"

(That's our target. Try to squeeze into cracks between the suitcases. We don't want to get swatted.) said Jake. He tried to sound nonchalant, but he couldn't hide the edge of fear in his voice. See, not so long ago, he had gotten swatted while in fly morph. It was a miracle he survived at all, but since then, he's been understandably edgy when morphing bugs.

We buzzed off of the ceiling and landed on Neville's luggage cart. I felt a sort of rush of air and suddenly, I could hear kids yammering all around. Through my compound fly eyes, I could see an old steam engine. I think it was red, but who can tell with fly eyes?

(There's the train.) I said.

As I lifted off, I heard Neville say, "Oh dear! I've lost Trevor!" I thought nothing of it at the time. I really should know by now never to overlook anything.

**Ax**

We managed to find our way on board the human vehicle.

Once again, I found myself utterly baffled by human behavior. They have the ability to travel a supersonic speeds, and yet, they continue to use laughable artifacts such as trains. But, I have learned that it is best not to attempt to understand human behavior. We flew to the back of the train and found an empty compartment.

(Okay, we'll wait until the train starts moving, just to make sure that nobody wants these seats, then, we'll demorph.) said Prince Jake. We all landed in various places. I ended up on the floor.

Suddenly, I heard a sound. "Rrrrriiibiiiit!"

(Prince Jake, I have heard that sound before, but I am uncertain as to what makes it. What is it?)

(Firstly, don't call me prince. And secondly, that's a toad.)

(Ah. And what do they eat?)

(Bugs, mostly. Mosquitos, spiders...flies...oh crap...Get out of there, Ax!) he shouted.

I flapped my wings and lifted off, but an impossibly long tongue shot out and grabbed hold of me.

(Prince Jake, I believe I have been ingested!)

(Ax man, demorph! Demorph now!) shouted Tobias.

He did not have to tell me. I instantly began to grow. I felt the toad shudder. I was growing too large for him to ingest. He spat me out onto the floor and let out a sound like something between a ribbit and a groan. I continued the morph until I was fully Andalite. Just then, the human child, Neville entered the compartment. I expected him to scream and run as most humans do when seeing an Andalite for the first time, but he simply said, "A Centaur! Wicked! I didn't know you could be blue! And that tail! And you've got extra eyes!"

(I am an Andalite.) I replied. Neville stared blankly. Obviously he was not a Yeerk or he would have attacked me.

(Tell him you're an American Centaur.) said Marco. I had no idea what that was, but obviously Marco was fairly certain that it resembled an Andalite.

(I am American Centaur.) I told Neville.

"Wicked!" he said. He then looked down at the toad and shouted, "Trevor!" He picked to toad up. "He doesn't look so good."

(Perhaps it was something he ingested.) I offered.

After that, the child left. Apparently, the sight of creatures like me was commonplace among these humans. Everyone else demorphed and I went to Human and we waited. A woman came by with a cart, asking us if we wished to purchase anything to eat. I was dismayed at the fact that we had no money and could not purchase anything, but then overjoyed when the woman handed us each a box of something called Bertie Bot's Every Flavor Beans.

Cassie was the first to try one. She produced an orange one and put it in her mouth."Mmm. Tastes like pumpkin pie." she said.

Marco then tried a green one. "Argh! Blech! I think I'm gonna be sick! That tasted just like a Brussels Sprout!"

I was next. I ate one of the beans. Taste exploded into my mouth. Chocolate! The another. Cheese! And another! Oh, grass! And another! And another! Suddenly, time seemed to stop. I knew this taste so well. It populated my dreams. Cinnamon Bun! The finest creation humans have ever made! "Beans! Beanzuh! Zuh! Beeeanzuh!" I said. I took the box and began pouring them into my mouth. Oh, the sensation of taste! Andalites who have never experienced it cannot possibly imagine! It can be overwhelming!

The Animorphs were laughing. They find my reaction to taste very amusing. After they had each tasted an unpleasant bean, they gave the rest of theirs to me. Although how any taste can be considered unpleasant is beyond my capacity to understand.

**Cassie**

Suddenly, a voice sounded. "We will be arriving at Hogwarts soon. Students should put on their school robes." We each looked at each other. This was a problem. None of us had robes and if we were going to pass ourselves off as students of the school, our morphing outfits would not do. Luckily, we were near a luggage compartment. We found some fitting robes with matching insignias.

"We'll return them when we're finished." said Jake.

I looked at the insignia. "Hmm. Griffindor. I wonder what it means?"

(I guess we'll find out soon.) said Tobias. He had remained a hawk and Ax morphed a Northern Harrier. We had seen many students with birds of prey, so we decided that they would fit in. The train sopped and we filed off with a group of four students who looked about our age. One was Neville. With him was a girl with frizzy brown hair, a blonde girl who was reading a magazine upside-down, a red headed boy, and a boy with messy black hair and round rimmed glasses.

The girl turned to greet us. "You must be new. Hello, my name is Hermione Granger. This is Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, Ron Weasly, and Harry Potter."

Luna looked up from her magazine. "You must be excited, going to school with the Harry Potter...Unless you believe that nonsense they've been printing in the Daily Prophet about him. You really should read the Quibbler. It's much more reliable."

I saw Harry roll his eyes. Whatever he was famous for, he obviously didn't like being in the spotlight.

"It's an honor." said Rachel, taking charge. "My name is Rachel. This is Cassie, Jake, Marco, and our hawks, Tobias and Ax. We're transfers from America."

Hermione smiled and nodded. "Pleased to meet you. I see you're all in Griffindor. You'll love it. It's the best of the houses." she shot a pointed look at Luna when she said this, but Luna had gone back to her magazine. I noticed that she had a different insignia on her robes.

Rachel flashed her million dollar smile. "So I've heard." Obviously she hadn't "heard," but we had to do our best to fit in.

"So, do you come from all wizarding families, or are you Muggle born?" asked Hermione.

"Oh, we're all Muggle born." said Rachel. Once again, not that we had the slightest clue what that meant.

"So am I. Neville, Ron, Luna and Harry are all Wizard born."

"Wow, it's amazing, Granger. More filthy mudbloods for you to bother." said a sneering voice. We turned, standing there was a mean looking blonde kid with the insignia of a coiled snake on his robes.

"Malfoy." growled Harry.


	4. Welcome to Hogwarts

**Notes** - A bit more changed here.

**Rachel**

"What do you want, Malfoy?" grated Ron.

"My, isn't that sweet? Weasly's protecting his girlfriend." Ron and Hermione's faces turned red. Malfoy continued. "You know, it's bad enough that Dumbledore's letting mudbloods into the school. But now, He's letting American mudbloods in? It's a disgrace. Wait 'til my father hears about this."

Okay, I knew that we needed to keep a low profile, but this kid was asking for it. And if I wasn't mistaken, he had just insulted the United States of America. Not happening. I stepped forwards. I stood about a head and a half taller than him. "Listen, you little jerk-weed, I don't know who you think you are, but you better step off, before I decide to use your pinched little face as a punching bag."

Malfoy stepped back. "You wouldn't dare! I'm a Prefect!"

I smiled cruely. "Try me."

Malfoy swallowed hard and seemed to consider us before leaving with a sneer.

"Who was that?" Cassie asked.

"Draco Malfoy, a grade-a jerk." answered Harry. "He's had a vendetta against us, and me especially, since our first day here."

"The fact that he's a Slytherin should tell you all you need to know about him." said Ron.

We all got into carriages and started off down a cobblestone road.

(Guys, I don't think Malfoy's a Controller, but still, we should watch out for him.) said Tobias in private thought speak. (The kid who attacked us at the community center had the Slytherin insignia on his cloak. Chances are, they know each other. If Malfoy discovers what we are, he'll blow our cover in a heartbeat.)

(Prince Jake, there is another possibility we must consider. The Yeerks may have found the same way into this facility that we did. If that is the case, then Visser 3 may be here as well.) said Ax.

"Geeze, would ya take a look at that!"said Marco in an awed tone of voice.

We all looked. Coming up over the crest of a hill was a huge palace. It seemed to have a thousand windows and each one of them was lit up. I had never seen anything like it.

By this time, we had approached the front doors of the palatial school. As we got out of the carriages, I noticed for the first time what pulled our coach. It was like a skeletal thin black horse with bat-like wings. It had a head like a dragon and white shining eyes. I looked at it and it looked right back at me, sending chills down my spine. There was a cold intelligence in those eyes.

"What are you looking at?" asked Hermione, stirring me from my thoughts.

I considered asking if she could see the creature, but I decided against it. I wasn't sure I wanted to know the answer. "Uh...it's nothing." I said.

She shrugged and continued. "You'll want to leave your birds outside. There's a school policy against bringing any pets besides mail owls into the dining hall." I looked back at the creature and wondered if the others could see it.

We made a show of releasing Ax and Tobias as if they were normal birds. Then, we entered Hogwarts.

**Jake**

The Hogwarts banquet hall was amazing. The roof looked exactly like the night sky, complete with the occasional cloud passing overhead. Hovering just above us were hundreds of lit candles. There were an introductory ceremony, placing first year students into their houses, and following that, a man who Hermione told us was named Dumbledore stood up.

Rachel leaned over to me. "That's who we're going to have to talk to eventually." I nodded.

"There is a time for announcements," began Dumbledore, "...But now is not it. Tuck in!"

The plates were suddenly filled with food. There were no servers at all. The food had just appeared.

As much as I hate taking what doesn't belong to me, I had to admit that the food set out for the students was some of the best I had ever tasted. There was every kind of good food you can imagine. There was steak and turkey and roasted chicken and honey-baked ham and baked potatoes and steamed vegitables and salad and for some reason, peppermints. I got a little bit of everything. I thought I had eaten my fill until dessert came and then, I discovered that I could fit a little more.

After a few announcements were made by Dumbledore, but he was interupted by a woman named Deloris Umbridge. This didn't seem to sit well with the students. But I figured it wasn't our concern. Finally, the students were released to their dorms. We followed our "fellow" Griffindors up an extremely frightening staircase which seemed to shift at random..

"Oh my god, the pictures are alive." said Cassie. It was true. People moved in and out of picture frames, conversing with each other as well as with the students. A picture of a young girl in a dress winked at Marco and me before running off giggling. Finally, after a long hike, we reached a painting of an immense woman.

She sighed irritably as if we had interrupted something important.. "Password?"

Ron stepped forward and said in an authoritative voice, "Flibbetty Gibbetty." With a click and a rush of air, the painting swung back to reveal a doorway. Marco and I took a room with Harry, Ron, and a few other boys, while Rachel and Cassie went in a room with Hermione and some girls. Before we went in, I gathered everyone together.

"We'll need to meet up with Ax and Tobias. As soon as everyone's asleep, morph Owl. We'll meet in that town we passed on the way in."

Three hours later, five owls and a red tailed hawk landed in an alley behind the Three Broomsticks Tavern.

(Let's all go human. We'll talk in here.)

Marco laughed. (Jake, buddy, this is a tavern.)

(It's okay. The legal drinking age in Europe is like twelve.) said Rachel.

Fortunately, we weren't the only teenagers in the place. It was a village, after all, and there had to be kids. Everyone seemed to be either discussing either something called the Ministry of Magic or Harry Potter.

I was really curious as to what he was famous for, but we didn't have time to speculate.

We sat in a booth and explained the situation to Ax and Tobias.

"So anyone got a plan?" asked Tobias.

"Whatever we do, we have to do it quickly. It won't take them long to discover that we don't exactly go to the school." said Cassie.

Suddenly, a voice came out of nowhere. "No, it won't take long at all." We all jumped as Harry, Ron and Hermione appeared out of thin air.

All three were pointing their wands at us.

**Cassie**

"Who are you?" demanded Hermione. "I checked the Griffindor roster, and none of you are on it. Are you working for Voldemort? Oh honestly Ronald. There's no power in his name." She said When Ron nearly dropped his wand.

I raised my hands in a gesture of peace. "Please sit down and we'll explain."

The three sat slowly, but they kept their wands trained on us.

"We're not actually Wizards." I began.

Ron interrupted. "But I saw all of you turn into birds. Muggles don't have that kind of power."

"Muggles don't normally have that power, but we were given it." said Jake.

"By who?" asked Harry.

"Believe it or not, by aliens." said Marco.

I nodded. "A race called the Andalites have developed the technology to become any animal they touch. It's our only weapon."

"Weapon? Against what?" asked Hermione.

I took a deep breath. "There are more than just the Andalites. An alien race called the Yeerks have come to Earth."

Harry narrowed his eyes. "What do they want?"

At that moment, I saw us back at the construction site, me, Jake, Rachel Marco, and Tobias. I had seen this many times in my dreams, only this time, I was Elfangor. I was the one who was about to burden these innocent children with the awful truth, and condemn them to a life of fear.

I chose the same words that he spoke to us on that night. "They have come to destroy us."


	5. Well it's Certainly not British Lit

**Notes **- I'm making the first of the Harry/Ron/Hermione pov chapters in here. 

**Ax**

"They have come to destroy us."

The three human children were silent. Humans tend to be very skeptical when it comes to beings from other planets, but there was no denying the truth in Cassie's words. The Yeerks had indeed come to destroy Earth. Not to annihilate the planet itself, no, that would not serve their purposes. But they would sweep across it, using up what they could and obliterating the rest.

Cassie went on to explain everything about the Yeerks and their invasion., from the meeting with Elfangor to our latest missions.

When she had finished, Prince Jake looked at me. "Ax, show them." I closed my eyes and opened up my mind. Through powerful bursts of thought speak, Andalites have the ability to transmit images and memories. I showed the human children what they needed to see; images of the Yeerk Pool with it's cages of screaming and crying hosts; images of Hork Bajir and Taxons; images of the raped Hork Bajir Home world; images of the future Yeerk controled Earth shown to us by the Elimist; and finally, images of Visser 3, my brother's murderer. With that image, I let them feel all my hate of him and all my despair at Elfangor's death.

**Harry**

Nothing in the world could have prepared me for the knowledge that was imparted to me that night. Knowing that these things were walking around, possibly being anything or anyone, Hogwarts no longer seemed quite so safe.

The one they had called Ax opened his eyes again. Hermione was softly crying and Ron looked like he wanted to. I simply sat with his mouth slightly open. "I...I had no idea." I stammered. "We have been worried about Voldemort, but this..."

The one called Tobias cocked his head in what struck me as a very bird-like movement. "I heard you mention that name before. Who is he?"

I sighed. This was not a subject I liked to discuss. "A long time ago, a wizard named Tom Riddle turned evil. As evil as one can go. He began practicing the Dark Arts heavily. In an effort to inspire fear, he changed his name to Voldemort. He swept across the wizarding world. Those who would not turn to his side, he killed. My...my parents were some of those who tried to fight him. They failed. He murdered them. He tired to kill me too, but when he cast the curse, it reflected back on him and left him an inch from death. I was fine but for this scar." I pulled back my hair to reveal the lightning bolt-shaped scar that Voldemort had left me with.

"But if he was able to kill all those wizards, why couldn't he kill you?" I asked.

Harry shook his head. Nobody knows, least of all me. But just last year, he returned to power. Now, he wants nothing more than to kill me."

Jake smiled. "I guess we have something in common then. That's about how Visser 3 feels towards us. We're about the only thing in the way of his conquest of Earth."

"I don't understand." said Ron. "You've told us about these Yeerks, but how does that affect Hogwarts? Muggles, even alien Muggles, can't get here."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Ronald. They're Muggles, and they made it in here."

Ron's face fell. "Oh, right. So we're doomed?"

"Not exactly." said Rachel. "The Yeerks will have a tougher time than we did. We have the Morphing ability on our side. Of the Yeerks, only Visser 3 has that, and I don't think that even he couldn't take this place by force. No, they'll do it slowly and subtly. We know one student is already infested, and more will follow unless we stop him.."

"He most likely brought a very small Yeerk Pool and a Kandrona generator with him which he uses every three days. Dayzz. Daaayzzuh." said Ax. "There are probably at least fifty Yeerks awaiting Wizard hosts at this moment...Moooooomentuh. We should try to find them and destroy them. Th...Th...Themmmmuh."

"But we won't be able to do this alone. We have to tell Professor Dumbledore." said Hermione.

Marco shook his head. "No can do. He could be a Controller."

I smiled wryly. "Trust me, if he was, then this fight would already be over."

Jake nodded. "Right, so our first objective is to find Dumbledore."

"Then your first objective is complete." said a voice. The Headmaster walked around the corner and into our booth.

Ron's face turned white as a sheet. "Professor...I...We didn't mean to...I mean...we thought..."

Dumbledore chuckled sat down in the booth. "Relax, Mr. Weasly. I know full well your intentions, and I applaud you for them." He then looked at the others. "And I thank you as well. The truth is, I have known of your little incursion since you stepped off the train. But, I did not sense any evil about you, so, I allowed you to stay until I could learn more. Now I see that we face a threat greater than any Hogwarts has ever known. Strange that we do all of our work to protect Muggles, and yet, it is in Muggles that we must place our hope." He thought for a moment. "The teachers will need to be in on this if we are to succeed in making everyone believe that you are students. Well...Most of the teachers at any rate. Here is what I shall do. One by one, I will call the teachers into my office. I will place the sorting hat on their heads. He should be able to tell if one of these aliens is present. If one is, we will simply detain the teacher for three days. If not, we will warn the teacher and tell him or her of this and of you. But understand this, you must not under ANY circumstances let your true identities slip to Professor Umbridge. That being said," Dumbledore stood up and smiled warmly. "I welcome you as honorary Hogwarts students."

**Cassie**

Thankfully, none of the teachers were Controllers.

Dumbledore decided that we would have to take some classes that didn't require magic use to make our ruse convincing to the school as a whole.

"This is total B.S." Marco complained between classes. "Even when we're saving the world, we have to be in school."

"Hey, look at it this way, it beats Tildwell's British Lit.." I said.

Our next class was Potions. Before class started, the professor, a very greasy and mean looking man called Snape who resembled a large bat pulled us aside. "I am well aware of who you are. But that does not let you off the hook. As potion making requires no foolish wand waving, even Muggles should at least begin to somewhat grasp it. But make no mistake, I will not hesitate to punish you, or even all of Griffindor for any problems you may cause. Now, go and take your seats."

"Is Dumbledore sure that this guy isn't a Controller?" Marco whispered as we went to our seats.

"Something I should have mentioned, I can hear a mouse tiptoeing three rooms away. That's ten points from Griffindor for disrespect to a teacher."

We were all careful to keep our mouths shut for the rest of the class. Fortunately, Marco wasn't the only one to lose points that day. Neville lost five points for not slicing an eye of newt perfectly in half.

Next, came Care of Magical Creatures. Finally, a class I could appreciate. I'd never cared for a magical creature before, but I've tended plenty of average animals in my life. An enormous man named Hagrid greeted us with a great big smile. "Dumbledore informed me'bout yer mission. Great man Dumbledore. An' Harry told me all 'bout ye. I mus' say, any friend o' Harry, Ron and Hermione 's a friend o' mine. Oh, an' don't worry 'bout this class. 'S easy so long as ye follow instructions."

By then, the rest of the class had arrived. To my dismay, we in a double class with Slytherin. I swear, just by looking at them, I could tell what kind of people they were.

Hagrid cleared his throat and began. "Right, we all here? Good. Since I'd figure ye've had 'bout enough o' the borin' stuff t' last ye a lifetime, I gave my new lesson plan t' the school governors and they've agreed to let me use some more interestin' creatures. Now, I'm warnin' ye ahead o' time; some o' these creatures are dangerous. The school 'll accept no responsibility for injuries that come from ignoring instruction. Now, with that said an' done, I figure this'll be good way t' start."

He whistled and a creature that looked like a cross between an eagle and a lion trotted out of the pen. I couldn't believe my eyes.

"Gryphon. Not nearly as smart as the Hippogryphs we met las' year, but still very dangerous, so ye'll still wanna be careful. Now, I'm sure we all remember what happened las' year, so there'll be no mishaps, right, Mr. Malfoy?"

Malfoy crossed his arms and scowled. I know, it sounds awful, but I secretly hoped that whatever happened to that boy had been really really painful.

"Right then, Cassie, I understand ye're an animal lover, d'ye wanna go firs'?" My heart jumped. He was actually asking me?

"Um, sure." I said.

Hagrid gave me instructions as we walked forwards. "Now, they scare easy, so jus' don't make any sudden sounds or movements, an' it'll be jus' like pettin' a cat. Start by rubbin' his beak. They like that."

I brought a shaking up and touched the Gryphon's beak. He began to make kind of a purring noise. I smiled. It really was kind of like a big cat. Suddenly, someone let out a loud yell.

The Gryphon lurched up, knocking me to the ground. It rose up on its hind legs and began kicking wildly in the air. I had seen Tobias hunt enough times to know what those wicked talons were capable of. I knew that I had only one chance. I stood and pressed my hands against the Gryphon's side and began to acquire his DNA. As with most animals, he went into kind of a trance. He dropped back to all fours.

"It's okay." I said. "You're safe. Nobody's going to hurt you." He turned his head to look at me with one fierce golden eye. He scrutinized me for a little bit, and I was afraid he would attack again, but finally, he dropped his haze and nuzzled me with his beak. It was almost like an apology.

"Amazin'! I've never known anyone who could calm a scared Gryphon that quick!" marveled Hagrid. "Ten points te' Griffindor! And twenty points from Slytherin and detention for you for that little prank, Mr. Malfoy. I'll take no guff from you this year."

"But there was a bee." said Malfoy indignantly.

Hagrid cut him off with a wave of his hand. "Now, I reackon he'll let ye ride 'im if ye want."

I smiled. I didn't figure it would be that exciting. I mean, I've actually flown in the body of a bird.

Boy was I wrong.

Hagrid lifted me up and set me on the Gryphon's back. He gave it a slap on the hindquarters and it took off running. As it cleared the trees, it spread its enormous wings and we took off. I gasped. Within seconds, we were at the level of the school's highest tower. Flying of your own accord is one thing. You are in control. But here, I was totally at the Gryphon's mercy. If he wanted to, he could have tipped me off his back and I couldn't have done a thing about it. But I knew he wouldn't. It was ,as Marco might say, a total rush. We soared around the whole school. I bacame aware of two birds of prey keeping pace with us.

(Having fun?) asked Tobias.

I grinned at him. This was more than fun.

We flew over the entirety of the school grounds and even skimmed the lake. At one point, I could have sworn that I saw an enormous eye under the water, but we passed before I could see for certain.

All too soon, a whistle from Hagrid brought us back down.

"That was amazing!" I said breathlessly.

Hagrid beamed as if I had just made his day. A bell sounded from the school. "Alrigh' class dismissed. Nex' time, everyone'll get a chance t' ride if they want it."

We walked back to the castle with Harry, Ron and Hermione, making fun of the look on Malfoy's face. As we passed a small closet, the door began to rattle.

"What the..." were the only words that I got out before the door swung open. My heart stopped. He stepped out from the darkness on four dainty hooves, his wicked bladed tail held high; An Andalite. But it wasn't Ax. I knew who this Andalite was. I had watched as he murdered Prince Elfangor. He had tried to kill me and the other Animorphs during every encounter we had ever had with him. He wasn't even actually a true Andalite. He was, in fact, the only Yeerk to ever capture one as a host. He looked at us and laughed, a vile sound that filled our heads. We stood face to face with our mortal enemy, Visser 3.


	6. Bogarts and Buggers

**Notes **- I added a new section

**Rachel**

_No! Visser 3 here? _I thought._ He knows! He must have discovered who we are!_ _We're here trying to save this place_ _while our families are probably_ _being infested right now! No time for that, I have to morph! _

Just as I began to sprout corse brown fur, Harry stepped forwards and drew his wand. Visser 3 suddenly turned into a figure cloaked in tattered black robes with a single skeletal hand.

"_Expecto Patronum!_"he shouted. From his wand sprang a silver light. The apparition stumbled backwards into the closet with a crash. Hermione closed the door and sealed it with a magic spell.

"What on earth was that?" Cassie asked shakily.

"It's called a Bogart." said Harry. "They turn into the worst fear of whoever happens to be close by. In your case, it turned into your enemy."

Jake nodded. "And what was that thing it turned into when you got close?"

Harry sighed. "It's called a Dementor. They're evil creatures that suck all happiness out of people. Last year, they came to Hogwarts to look out for an escaped convict from Azkaban, the wizard prison, named Sirius Black."

"Isn't that the terrorist who broke out of prison last year?" I asked.

Harry shook his head. "That's what the Ministry of Magic told muggle authorities. They wanted everyone to be on the lookout for him." Harry got a distant look in his eyes and smiled faintly. "Turns out he wasn't a criminal at all."

I thought about asking Harry what he was talking about, but I didn't have time. A voice behind us interrupted our conversation.

"Is there a problem here?" We turned to see Snape looking at us as if we were caught stealing.

"It's nothing, sir." said Harry. "Just a Bogart. We locked it in this closet." The door rattled as if to emphasize Harry's point.

Snape narrowed his eyes. "This closet does not have a lock. So, tell me, Potter how did the beast come to be locked in there?"

Hermione stepped forward. "I performed a sealing charm, Professor."

"I see. Well then, five points from Griffindor for defacing school property. Now go to lunch."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "Now wait just a minute, she sealed a dangerous monster in there, and you're taking points from her?"

Snape glared at me. "Because you are not a real student here, I will let that disrespect go for the moment, but one more word from you and I will make it fifty points. Go. To. Lunch...Now."

I so wanted to teach this guy a lesson, but Jake subtly shook his head at me, so I just shot Snape my worst look and walked away.

**Marco**

Snape was soon to be the worst of our worries. Harry, Ron and Hermione (along with just about the whole rest of the school) were telling horror stories about her. Professor McGonigal pursed her lips whenever her name was brought up. And even Professor Deumbledore had warned us to watch out for her.

Deloris Umbridge.

Even the name sounds nasty. My first experience with her came the day after our encounter with the Bogart.

I had been on my way to Herbology when I realized I had forgotten my book in the common room. I began to make my way up one of the staircases when it decided to move. I quite suddenly found myself in a completely different place than I wanted to be. If I had been smart, I would have just waited around for the stairs to move back, but that made way too much sense.

So, I searched out an alternate route.

To this day, I don't know how, but I somehow wound up near Umbridge's office. And, as luck would have it...

_"Hem hem."_ I turned at the annoying sound of the fake, 'I'm talking to you.' cough to find a woman who instantly struck me as part toad standing there with a clipboard.

"Uh...Hi." I said.

She raised an eyebrow. "And what might your name be?"

"Uh...Marco. I'm in Gryffindor."

Her eyebrow arched higher. "Just Marco? Or is your last name 'I'm in Gryffindor?'"

I told her my last name. "She flipped through her clipboard. "Ah yes. Here you are. Hmm...Fifth year. That's odd. All fifth years have Defense Against the Dark Arts with me. I don't recall seeing your face in my class. Why, do you suppose, is that?"

Fortunately, Dumbledore had prepared us for this. "I was a year ahead in my Defense class at my old school, so I'm exempt this year."

If it was possible, that eyebrow went higher. "Really? How facinating. Tell me, what was your old school?"

"Uh..." Crap. What was the name of the school in America that Dumbledore had given to us?

"You can't remember, or it was called 'Uh?'"

There it was! "It was Salem Academy of Magical Learning."

How was she still managing to arch that eyebrow any higher? "Ah. Then you must know Professor Tichiba."

And then finally, something went right. A tremendous boom sounded down the hall, followed by maniacle laughter.

Umbridge's eyes narrowed to slits. "Peeves!" she hissed. Without another word to me, she ran off down the hall.

I quickly made myself scarce. I knew I had just dodged a major bullet.

I also knew that Umbridge was going to be a major problem.

**Tobias**

It was the job of me and Ax to fly around looking for anything unusual. So far, we had met with absolutely zero success.

(Well, this is fun.) I said.

(I assume that was sarcasm.) Said Ax.

(Yeah, Ax-man, that was sarcasm. I mean, what exactly does Jake think we're gonna find? The Yeerks are a lot of things, but they're not stupid. They're not gonna put the pool where it can be seen. Listen, you've been in morph a while, and you must be getting hungry. I'll stay around for a while.)

Ax veered off to the forest where we had been staying. Dumbledore had warned us that it wasn't exactly safe, but Ax is pretty tough to take down.

I flew back around the school towards this weird looking stadium they have set on the grounds. I noticed a lone person sitting in the stands. I dove down and landed next to him.

(Hey, Harry.)

He jumped about two feet in the air and then relaxed. "Oh, hello Tobias. How is you're search going?"

I sighed. (Well, to be honest, it isn't going at all. Whatever the Yeerks are planning, they're keeping it well hidden. So, if you don't mind me asking, what is that you're looking at?)

He was holding what looked like a photo album, which wasn't so strange, except that the pictures in it were moving.

"Oh this, Hagrid gave it to me. It's got pictures of my parents in it."

(You must miss them a lot.) I said.

Harry shrugged. "Well not in the normal sense, no. I was only a baby when Voldemort murdered them. I guess I just wish that I could have known them. I wish that it was them who had raised me instead of Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia."

(You're story sounds a lot like mine.) I said. (I never really knew my parents either. My mom ran off a long time ago, and I never met my real father until right before he died.) I explained to him all that I had recently learned about Elfangor. (Anyways, all my life, I was shipped between my aunt on one side of the country and uncle on the other.) I laughed bitterly. (You know, I often wonder if they even bothered to report me missing after I disappeared.)

"Well if they're anything like my Aunt and Uncle, probably not."

(So, what's this stadium for, anyways?) I asked.

Harry stood. "This is where we play Quidditch, the Wizard sport. I'm on the Griffindor team. Practice starts tomorrow, and I just wanted to get a reacquainted with the stadium before then. It's sort of a tradition for me. Well, I have to be getting back or I'll miss dinner. I'm glad I got this opportunity to know you, Tobias. I'll see you around."

(Same to you. And good luck tomorrow.)

I took off, feeling much better than I had before.


	7. Quidditch and an Attack

**Notes** - Major changes to this chapter. Plot's getting much juicier.

**Marco**

We, as it turned out, were far from the only people having major Umbridge problems. Apart from the "Educational Decrees" which were giving her more and more power around the school, everything came to a head one night.

Jake and I were sitting in the common room, working on a five page paper for Snape, with loads of help from Hermione. We would much rather have been down watching the Quidditch game, but we were in enough trouble with Snape as it was.

Suddenly, the portrait slammed open and Ron and Harry, entered, followed by the rest of the Griffindor Quidditch team. They all plopped down in chairs looking absolutely distraught.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"That ruddy old bat Umbridge, that's what's bloody wrong!" yelled Ron, throwing a book through a window.

"Ronald, try and contain yourself." said Hermione, fixing the window with a spell. "What happened?"

Harry sighed. There was a hollow, pained look in his eyes. "After the Quidditch match, George and I sortof beat up Malfoy. Umbridge saw and now Fred, George and I are banned from Quidditch."

Angela Johnson, the team Captain was nearly in tears. "What are we going to do? Harry is the best Seeker Hogwarts has ever seen and Fred and George are unstopable as Beaters."

Suddenly, an idea sprung into my head. It was crazy. I knew it was crazy. It was beyond crazy... but that's what comes with being an Animorph. We eat crazy for breakfast.

See, in our free time, we had been watching the team practice and we knew the rules pretty well. I had especially been watching Fred and George since their job was a lot like baseball. And I love baseball.

I grabbed Harry and pulled him out of earshot of the others.

"Harry, can a broomstick be ridden by anyone?"

He shrugged. "I don't see why not. The magic is in the broom itself. Why do you ask?"

I just grinned. Jake's eyes went wide.

"No way..."

My grin widened. "Yes way. Look, we both play baseball and we're both good at it. Plus, name someone who has more experience in the air than the Animorphs."

Jake shook his head. "This is so insane...I can't even believe I'm saying this... but let's do it!"

Harry matched my grin. "Let's tell Angela."

We retold our plan to Angela and she just stared at us before grabbing us both in a huge hug. "I can't believe this! It's. brilliant. I owe you both big for this one! We'll start practice tomorrow!"

**Jake**

In the end, Ginny Weasley, Ron's little sister was chosen to take Harry's place as Seeker. She actually wasn't half bad.

Quidditch practice was a lot more grueling for us than I would have expected. I fell off the broom twice before I got down the correct way to hold on. And when I finally did manage to stay on for the first time, I took a Bludger right to the chest.

The nurse, Madame Pomfrey later said I was okay, but I swear there had to be a broken rib or two somewhere in there.

Even with the bruises though, it was still supremely cool.

By the end of practice, Ron and Harry said we were every bit as good as Fred and George. I'm sure they were just being nice, but it felt good all the same.

As we left the field, Ron said, "Get some sleep tonight, mates. Because, trust me, you're going to bloody well need it. We play Slytherin tomorrow."

I don't even remember dragging myself up the stairs and into the dorm. The next thing I knew, Marco was shaking me awake and telling me to come down to breakfast.

I sat at the breakfast table wolfing down eggs, bacon, sausages, and anything else I could get my hands on.

"Better not let Cassie see you eating like that. She may just decide you're too much of a pig and go after someone else." said a voice behind me.

I just grunted at Rachel as she sat next down to me with a plate.

After what seemed like too short a time, Angela gathered us together for a pre-game meeting. I'm sure she gave some kind of inspirational speech, but I wasn't paying attention. I was far too busy running over the multitude of rules a Beater had to know and making sure my protective gear was all securely in place. Just thinking of that Bludger made my chest ache all over again.

As we were headed to the stadium, I heard Cassie calling my name, so I hung back and waited for her to catch up. She looked up at me and bit her lip. I knew what she was trying to say. We never have used the "L Word" as Rachel calls it, but we both know how the other feels.

At last, she said, "Look, be careful, alright? Don't do anything brave or stupid out there."

I smiled wryly. "So what you're saying is don't do anything that we do on a daily basis?"

We both laughed at that.

There was another moment of silence. "Good luck, Jake." she said.

"Thanks." With that, I ran back to catch up with my team.

We waited for what seemed like an eternity while the announcer welcomed everyone and announced the particulars of the game.

Finally, the doors in front of us swung wide and we all zoomed out in a V-Formation. Jake and I took our places , just above the other players. I looked up and saw a Red Tailed Hawk and a Northern Harrier sitting atop one of the sky boxes.

(Good luck, guys. We'll be cheering for you.) said Tobias. (And praying.) he added darkly.

I nodded slightly and put my attention back on the game. The referee, Madame Hooch, opened up a wooden crate and released the Bludgers, and the Golden Snitch. She looked at each of the players in turn.

"Good luck, gentlemen. Now, I don't want to see any dirty tricks out there. I want this to be a nice clean game." she looked right at Malfoy as she said this. He just scowled. "Everyone ready? Begin!"

She blew her whistle, tossed up the Quaffle, and the game began.

A kid named Lee Jordan was commenting on the game. "AND THE GRYFFINDOR TEAM IS LOOKING IN FINE FORM TODAY AFTER THE DISGUSTING AND UNFAIR CUTS MADE BY THAT OLD-"

"Jordan! That's enough!" said Professor McGonagall's voice.

"SORRY PROFESSOR. ANYWAYS, OUR NEW BEATERS ARE DOING A FANTASTIC JOB OUT THERE! I HOPE THAT BLUDGER HURT, MONTAGUE...JUST KIDDING PROFESSOR. JOHNSON'S GOT THE QUAFFLE. SHE DODGES A POORLY AIMED BLUDGER FROM CRABBE. SHE SCORES! GRYFFINDOR LEADS, TEN TO ZERO."

I sent another Bludger rocketing towards one of Slytherin's chasers and managed to knock the Quaffle out of his hands.

Nothing else too exciting happened until near the end of the game.

Marco pulled up next to me and pointed. Malfoy and Ginny were neck-and-neck, racing towards the ground. "Look, Malfoy's pulling ahead." said Marco. "We've gotta do something." he said. Right at that exact moment, I saw a Bludger winding its way towards us.

I grinned at Marco. "I've got an idea." I sped towards the meandering ball and grabbed it in one gloved hand. It jerked and threatened to buck me off the broom, but I held on for dear life. Finally, I was in the perfect position. I chucked the it up in the air and hit it with my best home-run swing... straight...at...Malfoy. In the most surreal moment of my life, the Bludger knocked Malfoy right in the chest, throwing him to the ground. Ginny made a spectacular dive and caught the Snitch. The crowd roared with applause and cheering. Against all odds, we had won!

Ginny, Marco and I were hailed as heroes.

We celebrated into the night with all of Gryffindor. Fred and George had smuggled some food from the kitchens and we had ourselves a party. It wasn't until McGonagall came and told us off at Midnight that it ended. She called us two over after everyone else had gone.

"I wanted to thank the both of you deeply for this. This means the world to us..." she stopped and looked over at the wall where our brooms were propped up. "What are you doing with those? Those are school brooms! Put them back this instant!"

We hurried off towards the sheds to put the brooms back before McGonagall got really mad.

"I've never met anyone whose mood can change faster than hers." said Marco.

We were halfway there when something strange happened.

I suddenly felt very cold.

My thoughts, which had before been joyous at our victory, suddenly turned towards some very bad memories. I thought about the day when I learned Tom was a Controller. I remembered Tobias telling me he was a nothlit. I saw the Yeerk Pool with its cages of screaming hosts.

I looked over at Marco. He nodded. "I feel it too."

Then, we saw them. Two tall dark shapes were gliding across the grass towards us. They looked like the descriptions of the Ringwraiths in The Lord of the Rings. Only these had a single skeletal hand sticking out from beneath their robes.

Dementors.

I knew we couldn't fight them. Harry had said the only way to beat them was with Magic. So, we did the only thing we could do. We mounted our brooms and flew.

We hadn't counted on them being able to fly too, though. The creatures took off after us like a bat out of hell.

We tried everything we could. We dodged around towers, we zigged, we zagged, but nothing shook the Dementors.

"Marco," I yelled. "I have an idea. Follow me."

I flew down towards the Old Forest near the area where I knew Tobias was.

We both began screaming his name at the top of our lungs.

Finally, I saw him rise from the trees. (What on earth are you...Um...You two know you're being followed, right?)

"No duh!" Marco shouted.

"Tobias!" I yelled. "Find Dumbledore's office! Tell him we'll be right there and to expect visitors!"

(Oookay, will do.) he said, veering off towards the school. A few minutes later, (I found it. Fourth window from the bottom on the tallest tower.)

We shot towards where he had indicated.

"Get ready!" I shouted to Marco.

We shot straight towards the window. Closer...closer...I wondered too late if there was some kind of anti breaking charm on it, but fortunately, there wasn't. Our brooms smashed the glass and we flew across the room, diving from the brooms and rolling rather painfully several feet. Like clockwork, the Dementors swooped in only to meet Dumbledore. His eyes were literally flaming. He shouted, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" The shape of a large silver bird leapt from his wand and beat the crap out of the Dementors before they fled back through the window and into the night.

I stood painfully to my feet. I was covered in cuts and my ribs felt broken, but it was nothing a morph wouldn't fix.

Marco was in slightly worse shape. He had hit the wall when he jumped from the broom and there was blood running from beneath his hair, but he was alive,

Dumbledore conjured a stretcher and took Marco to the hospital wing. He insisted that I go also.

Madame Pomphrey gasped when she saw us.

"What on earth-"

"Dementors, Poppy." said Dumbledore grimly. "Two of them here at Hogwarts. But they are gone for now. These two gentlemen had the good sense to come to my office. Tend to them while I gather the staff. Jake, if you would come to my office when you feel up to it."

Madame Pomphrey fixed my ribs and cuts in a few moments and gave me chocolate to help with the after-effects of the Dementors. She said she wanted to keep Marco overnight.

I made my way back to Dumbledore's office. I found more than teachers there. McGonagall, Snape and Hagrid were there, but also, a young man, whose hair seemed to be graying early, wearing tatty robes, a girl with orange hair, a grizzled and very beat-up looking man with a bizarre blue eye that seemed to move of its own accord, a plump, pleasant-looking woman with red hair, a tall man who looked like an older version of Ron, and a large black dog.

"Ah, Jake. Come in."

I stepped in nervously and the door slammed behind me.

"Jake, what I am about to tell you, you may discuss with noone. Though the Ministry of Magic denies it, Lord Voldemort has indeed risen again. We here are part of a group dedicated to fighting him. We are the Order of the Phoenix. You already know professors McGonagall, Snape and Hagrid. The ones you do not know are Mr. Lupin, Ms. Tonks, Mr. Moody, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley."

I nodded and looked curiously at the dog. "Who is that?" I asked.

Dumbledore looked taken aback.

"I've been a dog." I explained. "I know how they act."

Dumbledore smiled. "Indeed. Sirius, you may show yourself."

The dog shifted and within seconds became a human with long dark hair. He grinned. "Well done. You're the frist person to see through my dog form. My name is Sirius Black."

"I'm afraid we havn't time to chit-chat." said Dumbledore. "Jake, please tell these people what happened."

I went into how we were attacked by the Dementors. When I was finished, everyone was silent.

"Blimey." said Hagrid. "But wha's it all mean?"

Lupin stood and crossed his arms. "It means this. Someone knows you are here. Those Dementors were acting on orders. They went straight after you two."

"But how?" asked Tonks. "The only people who could have ordered them would be the Ministry or You-Know-Who."

"Yes." said Dumbledore. "But which was it is the question of the hour. Arthur, keep your ears open at the Ministry for anything that might have to do with this. Severus, you know what to do."

Snape nodded and left the room.

"You've done a very brave thing tonight, Jake." said Dumbledore. "Few even among wizards can stand up to the Dementors. one-hundred points to Gryffindor. Well done."

"I can see why Harry talks so highly of you." said Sirius.

"That must have been some flying to evade those Dementors." growled Moody.

"You shoulda' seen 'im playin' Quidditch t'day!" said Hagrid. "''E's a ruddy amazin' flyer!"

"Yes yes," said Mrs. Weasley. "But he needs to get some rest. The poor dear's had quite a night without us prodding him." She opened her tank of a purse and pulled out a bag of some delicious-looking fudge. "Here, keep this dear. You'll feel better in no time. Now off to bed with you."

I said 'goodbye' to everyone and McGonagall escorted me back to the common-house.

Despite how tired I was, I couldn't sleep. Someone who wasn't the Yeerks wanted me dead and I had no clue why.


	8. Christmas at Hogwarts

**Notes - Meep! An entirely new chappie! This is where it's really gonna start getting good. (Hopefully!) I don't own jack so don't sue me.**

**Chapter Eight**

**Harry**

"WHAT?"

Alright, I usually try not to let my emotions get out of control. That tends to lead to cousins getting pythons set on them and aunts getting blown up and other consequences (even those things can be fun). But this time I couldn't help it. Dementors had now attacked twice. Once had been over the summer when two of them had come after me and my cousin Dudley one night at Privet Drive. As a result, I had nearly been expelled. And now, they were actually coming to Hogwarts.

Madame Pomphrey leaned out of her office and shushed me loudly. We were in the hospital wing, gathered around Marco's bed while he recovered. I stopped yelling, but my anger wasn't any less.

"The Ministry'll have to do something now." said Ron. "This is the second attack in just a couple of months."

I snorted. "Don't count on it. Fudge never believed that I was actually attacked and the Prophet didn't make a peep about it. They'll probably chock it up to another grab for attention on my part."

"And besides." said Jake. "We can't draw attention to the fact that we're here. Dumbledore was very specific about that. Tom and Visser Three and probably Chapman are in England. We start spouting off to the newspaper and they're sure to hear about it."

"Well bloody hell, what are we supposed to do?" said Ron.

"You know..." said Hermione thoughtfully. "We wouldn't have to report your names. All we need to say is that three students have now been attacked by Dementors. And to tie in with it, Harry, I think it's finally time that you came clean about everything that happened last June."

"It won't matter." I said. "No reporter with the Prophet isn't going to do it."

"I'm not talking about a Reporter with the Prophet...At least, she's not anymore." said Hermione, smiling.

"Then who..." began Ron, but his eyes went wide. "No way..."

Hermione grinned. "As Marco said, yes way."

Marco raised his eyebrow in a very Umbridge-like manner. "I'm being quoted and I don't even know why."

I ignored him. "She'll never do it. She hates me and even more to the point, she hates you."

Hermione snorted. "I don't care how that cow feels about me. She owes me for not turning her in as an unregistered Animageus. And besides, she hasn't had a reporting job since the Prophet fired her. She'll be eager to get back to it."

"Let's say that you're right for a moment." I said. "The Prophet will still never print the story."

"The Prophet won't, but there are others who would kill to get it."

"Excuse me," said Rachel. "We're still here and totally confused. Who are you guys talking about?"

Me Ron and Hermione all spoke at once. "Rita Skeeter."

**Rachel**

A week later, Hermione and Luna walked into breakfast. looking extremely smug. We asked her what it was and she triumphantly set down a copy of a magazine called The Quibbler in front of us. The story was right on the cover.

**HARRY POTTER SPEAKS OUT AT LAST:****  
THE TRUTH ABOUT HE-WHO-MUST-NOT-BE-NAMED,****  
AND THE NIGHT I SAW HIM RETURN.**

Hermione turned to the second page.

**WHEN DEMENTORS ATTACK:**

**HAS THE MINISTRY LOST CONTROL?**

To top it all off, the windows at the top of the hall opened and hundreds of owls poured in. Most of them dropped letters in front of Harry.

"I expect these are letters from readers." said Luna.

While some were people saying Harry was three-fries-short-of-a-Happy-Meal, alot were people who were now believers

To our surprise, one letter also dropped in front of Jake.

"What the...Who could have..."

I shrugged. "Open it."

Jake tore open the envelope and pulled out, not a piece of heave parchment, but a crisp white sheet of paper.

"Guys, it's from Erek!" he said. While the Wizards were busy reading Harry's fan mail, we looked over the letter from our friend.

_My Friends,_

_I heard about what happened. Geoffry is in touch with Dumbledore now and he told us about the Dementors.  
While I congratulate you on beating them, please understand that this severely complicates things._  
_I hope that I'm wrong, but it's possible that either Voldemort or the Ministry is in league with the Yeerks.  
Whatever they're planning, it's staying in the upper echelons of Yeerk Command. There's barely been a peep about the mission in England.  
I'll keep digging and see what I can find.  
I wish you success._

_ Erek_

_P.S.  
Reporting to the Quibbler was a briliant idea. Well done._

I looked up and saw that Umbridge had come sniffing around while we had been reading. I quickly snatched the letter from Jake and stuffed it in my robes. 

Harry gave her the copy of the Quibbler and as she read it, her face went livid purple and she gave Harry a week's worth odetentions. As she stormed up to the staff table, she looked straight at us. I got a chill down my spine

"Guys," I said when she walked away. "She knows. She knows it was Jake and Marco who were attacked."

"But how?" asked Cassie. "The only ones who know are us, Harry, Ron and Hermione and the Order. How could she have found out?"

"I don't know," I said, "All I know is that Delores Umbridge knows more than she's letting on."

Less than an hour later, huge notices appeared all around the school.

* * *

By Order of 

**The High Inquisitor of Hogwarts**

**Any student found in posession of the magazine, the Quibbler will be expelled.  
Furthermore, any student who makes mention of Dementors will lose 100 House Points and will have all Hogsmeade privaledges revoked indefinitely. **

_The Above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-Seven._

Signed,

_**Delores Jane Umbridge**_

High Inquisitor**

* * *

**

**Cassie**

If possible, Hermione looked even more smug after this. "This decree means two things. One, that people will be sure to read the Quibbler now that it's banned and two that Umbridge is worried about people discussing the attack. We're closer to finding out who was behind it. If it wasn't Umbridge herself, then it's someone she knows."

As if in response to the news, the sky, which had been looking threateningly grey for weeks, opened up. But instead of the tooential rain I expected, it snowed. And snowed. And snowed some more until all of Hogwarts was blanketed in white.

With the exception of Potions, which took place in the already freezing dungeons, all of our lessons were unusually good.

Hagrid taught us about Eefriets, little farie-like creatures which had long ago been mislabeled as demons. They were actually very friendly and kept us warm.

As happy as I felt, I knew Ax and Tobias were miserable. We had to smuggle Tobias food from the Great Hall and Professor Sprout was secretly speed-growing grass in shallow pots for Ax to eat.

One morning, I awoke to find Hermione packing.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Ron, Harry and I are going to Sirius' house for the Christmas Holidays."

I blinked several times. Christmas? Was it here already. I felt a pain in my chest. This would be the first Christmas that I wouldn't be spending with my family. I had never really appreciated the little things about it before. My dad waking us all up Christmas Morning, singing carrols very badly, my family coming over to exchange presants, everyone sitting down to Christmas Dinner.

Hermione seemed to have seen my crest-fallen expression so she said in an apologetic tone, "I asked Dumbledore if you all could come too, but he feels that it's safer if you stay. I'm sorry. But Christmas at Hogwarts is very good. The Great Hall is lined with trees, Hogsmeade is spectacular and the dinner is quite excelent."

I shrugged. "Thanks. It's okay. We need to keep watching for the Yeerks anyways."

Hermione smiled. "We'll see you in a few weeks. Happy Christmas, Cassie."

**Jake**

Christmas Morning, I awoke already feeling depressed and very home-sick. I loved Christmas and I thought about what my family was doing . I sighed and sat up.

I blinked sever times, but it wasn't an illusion. There was a pile of presents at the foot of my bed. I looked over at Marco's bed to find it was the same story.

"Wake up!" I said.

Marco sat up and looked around sleepily before his eyes fell on his own pile.

"Merry Christmas!" I said.

We tore into our gifts immediately. Harry had given me and Marco each a copy of a book called Quidditch Throughout the Ages. From Hermione, there was a Homework Planner that said a different catch-phrase on each page. Ron had sent us each a massive bar of of Honeydukes Chocolate. There was also a box from Hagridwith a note attatched.

Happy Christmas!  
I carved these myself and Professor Flitwich charmed em for me.  
Come down to my cabin a bit later and we can have some tea. Then there's something I want to show all of you.

Hagrid

I opened the box and to my surprise, a miniature wooden tiger leapt out onto my hand and let out a tiny roar. I laughed and looked at Marco. A miniature gorilla was doing back-flips on his bed.

Mrs. Weasley had sent us a huge box of home-made fudge and mince-pies along with sweaters with our first initials on them.

We met up in the Common Room with Rachel and Cassie who were beaming. I then noticed that a miniature wooden Gryphon was flapping around Cassie's head.

"Merry Christmas!" we all said at once and laughed. We were like a bunch of kids on...well on Christmas Morning.

**Rachel**

"Hey, look, there's boxes under the tree." said Cassie. "And they're to Ax and Tobias!"

We went out to the edge of the forest where we met them.

To Ax, there were five huge boxes of Bertie Bot's Every Flavor Beans and some Weasley Fudge. To Tobias, there was fudge, mince-pies, Honeyduke's Chocolate and a bow of live mice.

We enjoyed the morning with them, laughing and eating and watching our wooden figurines wrestling around.

We left them and went over to Hagrid. He grinned at us and invited us in.

When we had finished with tea, he beckoned us outside.

"I've got a treat for yeh. Been raisin' these up fer the firs' lesson after the Hols, but I wanted yeh t' see 'em firs'."

We rounded a bend and there, galloping around a large pen were what could only be...

"Unicorns! Still a bit small, these ones, but they'll be big enough by the time term starts again."

I stared. They had to be the most beautiful creatures I had ever seen. Their coats gleamed silver in the sunlight.

"Can we touch them?" asked Cassie.

Hagrid grinned. "I was hopin' yeh migh' ask. See, I was thinkin' about those Yeerk thingamabobs an' I figured yeh might want a bit of an edge if they show up. An' seein' as how Unicorns are magical an' dead useful in battle, I thought yeh migh' aquire 'em."

We stepped cautiously into the pen one-at-a-time and aquired the Unicorns. I swear i felt a warm glow spread throughout my body as I did it.

We thanked Hagrid and went back up to the Great Hall for dinner. Hermione had been right. It was spectacular. The highlight was the fire-crackers that gave out presentsBy the end of the night, I had loads more candy, a magical chess set and a model broomstick that flew wildly around the room.

I went to bed and fell into a deep sleep.

But as I slept, I had a strange dream. I was in a dark room. I was sitting on the floor, rocking back and forth, but making no noise. I was expecting something, but I couldn't think of what. I heard a creak and a door I hadn't noticed before opened. The light that came in seemed blindingly bright. I shielded my eyes with my hands until a tall shape blocked the light. I looked up. Standing in the door was a tall figure, wrapped in a cloak.

"Master." I croaked.

"Rise, my faithful servant." the figure hissed. "It is time."

I stood shakily to legs that hadn't had any exercise for a very long time. Suddenly, the man grabbed my head and turned it around to meet his eyes. He stared at me for a long time.

"Someone watches us." he hissed. He pulled out a wand and pointed it at me.

"Crucio!" he hissed. Pain shot through every limb and I fell to the ground screaming.

"Rachel!"

I don't care. I just want the pain to end.

"Rachel! Jake, Marco, someone help!"

Who is that? Why won't she be quiet? Doesn't she realize I'm dying?"

"Cassie, what...Oh my god...Marco, go find Professor McGonagall, quick!"

Shut up. Just shut up. Let me die.

"Oh my goodness! Bring her! We must get her to the hospital wing!"

Oh god it hurts...

"Goodness gracious me! What happened?"

"I don't know. I woke up because she was muttering in her sleep. Then, she just started screaming."

Why is she crying? She doesn't know what pain is. She doesn't have a right to cry!

I heard more voices then, but they were jumbled. Everything was spirling down down down.

And finally, there was nothing.


	9. Umbridge in Charge

**Notes** - Notha new chapter for your reading pleasure. Sorry it took so long (again). I own...uh...crap...I don't own anything.

**Chapter 9**

**Cassie**

We all refused to leave Rachel's bedside over the next few days. Professor McGonagall finally conceded and allowed us to sleep in beds in the hospital. I couldn't ever remember being so scared. Rachel had been my best friend since we were four years old. We did everything together. And now, she was hovering on the brink of death.

Harry Ron and Hermione were there almost as much as we were, but it was clear that something was bothering them besides Rachel's state.

Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle came by to gloat once. And, with the new position Umbridge had given them, they docked 50 points from Gryffindor (Because you're Americans) and then another 20 (Because you're all Mudbloods).

But things were only about to get worse. A few days after the Holidays ended I was alone in the room while the others had gone down to get something to eat. Suddenly, the door burst open a Ravenclaw girl was ushered into the Hospital Wing by Professor Umbridge. I couldn't see what was wrong with her because she had her face entirely covered.

Following close after was a dumpy little man in a Pinstriped suit and a young man who looked so similar to Ron, Fred and George that I knew he had to be related to them. All three of them looked rather shaken.

"Delores, I want you to search every nook and cranny in this place until he is found!" the dumpy man was shouting. "Question every student! Do whatever is nessesary! He's here somewhere! It's impossible to disapperate inside Hogwarts, even for Dumbledore!"

"I certainly will, Minister. My Inquisitorial Squad is standing by!" said Umbridge.

I realized that the dumpy man had to be Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic. And that explained who the young man was. Ron had told us all about Percy, his moron of a brother.

But I was more interested in what they had said. Dumbledore was gone?

"You! What are you doing here?" asked Umbridge, seemingly noticing me for the first time.

"I'm just staying with Rachel." I said. "She's hurt."

Umbridge advanced menacingly. "I've seen you and your friends with Harry Potter. I suppose you were part of Dumbledore's Army as well!"

"Dumbledore's...What? I have no clue what you're talking about."

Umbridge narrowed her eyes and reached into her pocket. At first, I thought maybe she was going for her wand, but instead, she pulled out a piece of parchment. She unfolded it and scanned it sever times before furiously folding it back up.

"Get out!" she snapped. "Ten points from Gryffindor! Go join your classmates at dinner!"

Not really wanting to really get more on her bad side, I left. On the way, I ran into Harry.

"Harry!" I said. "What's going on? Umbridge and Cornelius Fudge were just up in the Hospital Wing going on about Professor Dumbledore vanishing. And then Umbridge accused me of being in something called Dumbledore's Army."

Harry sighed. "It's all my fault. Some of us formed a secret group to learn real Defense Against the Dark Arts right under Umbridge's nose, and we called ourselves Dumbledore's Army as a joke. One of the members got cold feet and tipped Umbridge off. We almost got away, but Malfoy caught me and Pansy Parkinson found the member list with the group's name on it. Umbridge and Fudge tried to corner Dumledore in his office, but he took the blame for us and fled Hogwarts. This is a disaster."

I had to agree. Dumbledore was the one who was making it possible for us to be at Hogwarts in the first place. I had absolutely no doubts that Umbridge would be taking his position. Sure enough, another Educational Decree appeared the very next day, declaring her the new Headmistress.

One bright spot in the whole situation was that Fred and George took it upon themselves to declare war on Umbridge. They innitiated this by setting off a massive crate of magical fireworks in the middle of the school. None of the teachers seemed too inclined to help the new Headmistress.

As we sat in Herbology that afternoon, a sparkling Dragon swooped through the greenhouse roof. Seconds later, a very singed-looking Umbridge charged in and began firing spells at it. Professor Sprout watched with a look of dull indifference on her face. One of the spells hit an odd cactus-like plant which proceeded to spray Umbridge with a foul-smelling liquid. She screamed in frustration.

"Oh dear." said Professor Sprout in a bored voice. "Well, that's a lesson for you class. If you ever run across a Mimblus Mimbletona, don't use an Impediment Jinx on it."

**Harry**

I don't think I could ever feel more miserable than I did at that time. It had been my worst year ever spent at Hogwarts. Every ray of hope that I clung to had vanished. No more Quidditch, no more D.A. lessons, no more Cho, no more Dumbledore, and no more talking to Sirius.

But something happened to change my mood. I was trudging across the grounds with Ron and Hermione when Tobias swooped in low over our heads.

(Guys, get up to the Hospital Wing. Rachel's awake!)

As fast as our legs would carry us, we ran up through the castle and into the Hospital. We found the Animorphs already there. Rachel was sitting up in her bed, drinking a goblet of Pumpkin Juice. Madame Pomphrey was flitting about, fussing over her.

Rachel smiled weakly. "Hey guys."

"Rachel, how are you feeling?" asked Hermione.

She smiled wryly. "Like I've just been run over, but I probably look worse than I feel."

Actually, this wasn't at all true. Despite the fact that she was somewhat pale, she still looked stunning.

Just then, Professor McGonagall entered.

"I'm glad to see that you are awake." she said to Rachel. She then turned to Madame Pomphrey. "Poppy, can you tell what happened to her?"

The nurse sighed. "That's just it, Minerva. I have no idea. She shows every symptom of having been placed under the Cruciatus Curse, but that's just not possible."

Jake furrowed his brow. "What's the...whatever curse."

McGonagall sighed. "The Cruciatus Curse is one of the three Unforgivable Curses. It's purpose quite simply, to cause pain. The Death Eaters often used it to extract information from prisoners. Most that survived the pain were driven mad."

Rachel got a faraway look in her eyes. "The dream..." she whispered.

"What did you say, child?" asked McGonagall.

"Christmas night, I had a dream. I was in some kind of cell and this...thing opened the door. I couldn't see his face. Just red eyes. He said it was time and I kept calling him 'Master.' Then, he looked me in the eyes and said that someone was watching us. He pointed his wand at me...and that's all I can remember except that I was in pain."

We all stared at her in shock. Christmas night, ten of Voldemort's most loyal Death Eaters had escaped from Azkaban. And Rachel having a vision of Voldemort springing someone from prison on Christmas night couldn't possibly be coincidence.

McGonagall sighed and rubbed her eyes wearily. "I must think this over." she said. She got up and left quickly followed by Madame Pomphrey. I hoped they were going to contact Dumbledore.

**Ax**

I was very glad to see Rachel awake. I had feared that she would be trapped in a coma just as Falcon had been on _Santacruz_, one of my favorite television shows. I told Tobias that I would continue the search while he spent time with Rachel.

According to Cassie, Rachel and Tobias _like _each other, though she says that they are in denial about it. As I flew lower, I caught sight of the woman, Professor Umbridge, leaving the castle. Prince Jake had told us all to keep an eye on her. Fighting down the mental image of pulling out one of my eyes and putting it on her, and sighing inwardly at the absurdity of human expressions, I circled down to where she was. She had entered a garden beside the school and was speaking with two other wizards.

"Thank you both for coming." she said. "Now, the half-giant lives in the small hut you may have seen on the way in. We will go there together and give him his order of suspension. If the oaf does not respond in a favorable manner, we will deal with him in a way he understands."

The two wizards nodded and followed her out of the garden. But I was faster. See, the Animorphs had taught me a very potent method of distraction to use while in bird-form.

A few moments later, I was speeding towards Hagrid's house while Professor Umbridge cleaned a slimy white substance out of her hair. I turned around the edge of the trees and entered Hagrid's open window. He was sitting at the table drinking a very large glass of tea. He blinked when he saw me, not quite sure of what to make of me.

(Hagrid, it is I, Aximilli.) I said.

"Oh, 'ello. Somethin' I can do for ye?" he said.

(No, but Professor Umbridge is on her way here to give you an order of suspension. She has two additional wizards with her, so I do not believe that is all she is planning.)

"The ruddy ol' bat!" he growled. "Thought she'd catch me unawares, did she? Well I'll show 'er! Come on, Fang! We're leavin'!"

He stuffed a few items into his coat and ran for the door. Suddenly, it opened and Professor Umbridge and the other wizards stood there with their wands out.

"Oh, were you going somewhere?" she asked.

Fang growled. "Get outa' my house!" Hagrid bellowed.

"Now, now, Hagrid," said Umbridge, "Be reasonable. There is no reason for there to be an incident here."

"I'LL GIVE YE AN INCIDENT!" Hagrid drew back one massive fist and punched one of the wizards, sending him, quite literally, flying backwards.He then shoved the other two out of the way and charged out the door, followed by Fang.

"Stop him!" shouted Umbridge.

They began firing spells at Hagrid, but none seemed to affect him, though I knew it could not keep up forever. I soared out the door and began dive-bombing Umbridge and the remaining wizard.

"WHAT IN MERLIN'S NAME IS GOING ON!" I saw Professor McGonagall running out towards us from the castle. Without answering her, Umbridge and the Wizard hit her with spells and turned their attention back to Hagrid.

I dove down and attempted to take Umbridge's wand, but she saw me at the last moment. She turned and shouted, "Stupefy!"

I could not dodge the jet of red light which hit me, sending me careening to the ground. I could not move, I could not thought-speak, and I could not demorph. Umbridge walked over to me and roughly picked me up.

"High Inquisitor, the Giant is escaping!" said the Wizard.

"He does not matter." said Umbridge. "I believe this might be a hostage of infinitely greater value."

"But maam, it is merely a bird."

Umbridge smiled. "Oh, I am not so sure. A quick spell will reveal the truth. Come with me."

As she carried me up to the castle, I could only think about how I had merely twenty minutes remaining in this morph...And nobody knew where I was.


	10. Professor Umbridge Flies!

**NOTES** - AHHH! It's here! lol. Sorry It's taken so long AGAIN! I've been quite busy rehersing for a production of The Wind in the Willows. But here it is at long last. And it's one of my funnier chapters, if I do say so myself. Please Read and review.  
Oh, in case anyone was wondering, I STILL don't own any of this.

* * *

**Harry**

I was in my History of Magic O.W.L. when it happened. My scar suddenly exploded with pain. I fell out of my chair with a yell and blacked out.

As I did, something strange but all too familiar happened. I found myself walking along a dark corridor towards a large black door. My heart raced with excitement. I was going to make it this time. The door opened and I stepped quickly through into a cathedral-sized room filled with row upon row of high shelves. Sitting in every available space on the shelves were glowing glass orbs. I walked down the rows until I reached Row 97. I looked down to the end of the row. Standing there were two large beasts holding a man between them. I walked down towards them.

_"Release him."_ I ordered. They did so, but as the man fell, one of his arms grazed the wicked blade which jutted from one of the creature's wrists. He cried out, clutching the wound.

_"Take it for me."_ I hissed. _"Lift it down now...I cannot touch it...but you can."_

The man shifted and muttered something. I lifted my arm. Clutched in my long white fingers was a wand. "_Crucio_!" I hissed.

The man screamed and tried to stand but fell to the floor again. I laughed. _"Come now, Lord Voldemort is waiting."_

The man slowly lifted his blood-stained face. _"You'll have to kill me."_ he whispered.

_"Perhaps not."_ I hissed. I looked at the two creatures. _"Bring him."_

They roughly grabbed him and dragged him down to another row. Standing there was a large pewter-colored tub filled with frothing liquid. Even though he had to have been scared, he lifted his gaunt, haggard face and stared at me defiantly. One of the creatures grabbed Sirius' head and thrust it under the liquid.

_"It seems that there is something to be said for your methods after all."_ I said to the blue centaur-like creature who walked up beside me.

_(Quite.)_ it replied. _(The Visser will be most pleased.)_

I laughed along with the Controller who was once Ax.

I awoke suddenly and found a large group of people standing over me.

"Out of the way! Out of the way!" said Professor Tofty as he shouldered his way through the crowd. "We must get him to the Hospital Wing!"

"I'm fine." I muttered as he hefted me to my feet with surprising strength. He led me outside the Great Hall and sat me down on a bench. "I just fell asleep." I said. "Had a nightmare."

Tofty shook his head and clucked his tongue. "Pressure of examinations. It happens." I assured him that I was fine and that I was done with my exam. As soon as he was gone, I raced up to the Hospital Wing, nearly bowling Madame Pomphrey over.

"Potter, what do you think you are doing?" she shrieked.

"I need to see Professor McGonagall!" I gasped. "Now! It's urgent!"

"I'm afraid she isn't here, Potter." Pomphrey said sadly. "Two stunning spells to the chest and at her age no less. She has been transferred to St. Mungo's."

I gaped at her. First Dumbledore, then Hagrid and now McGonagall was gone too? The bell rang outside and I knew that Ron and Hermione would be tearing out of the Great Hall up here to check on me. I noticed suddenly across the room, the Animorphs still gathered around Rachel's bed. At that moment, as I had predicted, Ron and Hermione ran in, out of breath.

"Harry, are you alright?" Hermione asked.

"Come on." I said. "There's something everyone needs to hear."

When we were sure nobody would overhear, I related what I had seen to Ron, Hermione and the Animorphs. Tobias instantly abandoned his perch on the windowsill to go see if Ax was really gone. A few minutes later, he returned to report that there was no sign of the Andalite anywhere.

Jake rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Alright, let's focus on what we know, people. If what Harry saw was right, Ax and Sirius are Controllers by now. So they know everything. The location of Hogwarts, who we really are, and how to get here. So why haven't they showed up yet? Harry, could what you saw have been wrong?"

"I don't know." I said. "But I know how I can find out. I need to talk to Sirius."

**Marco**

The plan was insane. It was more than insane. It was borderline suicidal.

Which explains why we were going through with it.

See, Harry Ron and Hermione had, unfortunately, learned the hard way that Umbridge was having every fireplace in the Castle watched. Every fireplace, that was, except her own.

Ron was running to Umbridge's office to tell her that Peeves was smashing up the Trophy Room. As soon as she was gone, Harry and Hermione were going to sneak into her office under the Invisibility Cloak and try to contact Sirius. We, meanwhile, were with them in our lovably disgusting fly forms as extra backup.

Everything seemed to be going fine. We heard Harry talking to someone and he sounded worried.

Suddenly, he was jerked violently back.

(Guys, they're made.) said Cassie. (I'm on the ceiling and Umbridge is here with the Inquisitorial Squad...But where's Malfoy?.)

(God,) I growled, (I am so entirely sick of that woman.)

(Wait, Hermione's saying something...) said Cassie. (Wow...Either she just sold them out or she's got a plan. She, Harry and Hermione are going outside alone.)

(Either way we've got to do something.) said Jake.

(Wait a minute.) said Cassie. (Umbridge is stopping...She's pointing her wand at Harry.)

Suddenly, a jolt went through my body and, to my horror, I found myself growing. I concentrated and tried desperately to reverse it, but I couldn't. I was, without meaning to, demorphing at top speed.

(Guys, what are you doing?) demanded Cassie.

(I can't stop it!) I said. (I-) just then, I lost the ability to thought-speak.

A moment later, three kids and a red-tailed hawk were laying in a pile next to Harry.

"Well, well." said Umbridge smugly. "The spies. I shall have to remember to thank dear Lucius next time I see him. How desperate Dumbledore must be to be employing Muggles to do his dirty work. Even Muggles as extraordinary as you. I had hoped my Dementors would do the trick, but Dumbledore pulled you out of that one. Fortunately, the de-transformation spell works against your power as well as it does on Animagai, as your disgusting half-breed friend discovered. I have already delivered him to the Ministry and I will be very happy to add you into the bargain."

I realized suddenly that she was talking about Ax. So she was the one who had given him to Voldemort and the Yeerks!

She narrowed her eyes. "Wait...One of you is missing..." She pointed her wand at Hermione and then at everyone and everything else in the room.

(Cassie, where are you?) asked Tobias.

(I'm...um...In her hair.) she said.

I resisted the urge to look up at the woman's hair.

She swept her wand around the room once more. "Hmm...No matter. I will have you all soon. But first, lead me to this 'weapon,' of Dumbledore's, Miss. Granger."

**Harry**

I really hoped Hermione had a plan. Umbridge had left Ron and the Animorphs with the Inquisitorial Squad and we were now marching, led by Hermione, towards the Forbidden Forest.

"Ah. So, he's been keeping it in Hagrid's hut, has he?" asked Umbridge.

"No." said Hermione. "Hagrid might have set it off."

Umbridge nodded knowingly. "Ah. Of course. The stupid brute."

I bit back a retort and kept walking.

Hermione turned past Hagrid's hut and into the forest. I hoped again that she knew what she was doing. This, rather than being the path we had taken to go see Grawp, was the path Ron and I had taken second year to find Aragog the Giant Spider, a memory I didn't treasure.

"Er...Professor, d'you think we could have the wand since we're going in first?" I asked.

Umbridge chortled. "No, I'm afraid not, Mr. Potter. You see, the Ministry places a rather higher value on my life than on yours."

I sighed, glanced at Hermione and went in.

A few moments later, we were surrounded by Centaurs.

**Cassie**

I abandoned my perch on Umbridge's head as soon as the Centaurs showed up.

I didn't know much about Centaurs, but they didn't sound friendly and I wanted to be ready to help Harry and Hermione if they needed it.

As soon as I was human, I started to go wolf, but then an image popped into my head; a morph I hadn't tried yet that would be better suited to the task.

The first thing that happened was long, ugly naked stalks sprouted from my back and started growing...and growing...and growing until they reached about a ten-foot span from tip to tip. Then, they began sprouting feathers. My knees suddenly reversed directions and I fell on all fours. My lips hardened and began stretching out. Feather patterns appeared on my upper body, while golden fur began sprouting from my lower body. My fingers hardened and merged together to form wicked talons. My feet had become dainty cat's paws. A long tail sprouted from just above my butt.

Finally, the morph was complete. I had become a Gryphon.

The mind was surprisingly simple. It was a weird combination of a Bird of Prey's sharp, ready mind and a cat's cool, 'whatever, man' attitude.

I looked up with my sharp eyes. The Centaurs had lifted Umbridge up and were carting her off, kicking and screaming, into the forest.

I hesitated a moment. While Umbridge was an absolutely foul woman, I didn't want to see her killed. Besides, I wanted Dumbledore to do her justice.

I crouched down and sprang off into the forest after them. The Gryphon, while not as fast as a lion, nonetheless retained the ability to move stealthily, despite its size.

I kept as low as I could in the bushes and watched the Centaurs and Umbridge.

They threw her roughly to the ground. I could hear them muttering, but couldn't pick out what they were saying. But finally, they seemed to come to a decision.

One picked up his spear and held it over the pathetic woman.

I sighed inwardly. Sometimes, just sometimes, I wish I could be as cold as Marco and Rachel can sometimes be.

I burst out of the bushes and reared up on my hind-legs, making a sound somewhere between a screech and a growl. The Centaurs jumped and scattered. In the confusion, I grabbed Umbridge's horrible pink sweater in my talons and took off into the air.

"PUT ME DOWN!" she screamed like a banshee.

I laughed, not caring that she heard my thought-speak.

"YOU!" she bellowed.

(Yeah, me.) I said.

I flew her over the forest and then out over the Lake.

"Y-YOU SET ME DOWN THIS INSTANT!" she screamed.

(Are you sure?) I asked sweetly.

"YES!" she replied. "LET ME DOWN!"

(Well, if you insist...) I said.

Just then, Umbridge looked down and saw the Lake's glassy surface.

"DON'T YOU DAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" she screamed as I released her.

She landed in a very satisfying belly-flop. I laughed again, headed for the shore and landed.

As I did, several...somethings emerged from the water.

They looked oddly like creatures we had encountered before, living under Earth's oceans except that they had fish tails.

The lead one inclined his head slightly.

"Thank you for delivering her to us."

(Uh...I wasn't...Who are you?) I asked.

"We are the Mer-People. We take great offense at her stance on non-humans."

(Uh...I just rescued her from being killed by the Centaurs. You're not going to...)

The Mer-Man gave a watery chuckle. "No. We do not administer justice. We will but hold her until Dumbledore returns."

(Uh...Thanks.) I said.

Without another word, the Mer-People sank back below the Lake's surface and I demorphed.

I headed back up into the castle and to Umbridge's office. Before I went in, I morphed wolf.

I burst through the door with a growl, but it was unnecessary. The Inquisitorial squad was out cold.

"Glad you could join us." said Marco.

"What happened to Umbridge?" Ron asked.

I grinned as I demorphed. "The Mer-People are holding her 'til Dumbledore gets back."

"Mer-People?" asked Rachel. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Marco, don't you dare sing even one Disney Song." she warned, seeing him open his mouth.

"Come on." I said. "Harry and Hermione are still in the Forest."

We all ran back outside and into the trees. By luck, we met Harry and Hermione a short ways in.

"Ugh." said Rachel. "What happened to you two?"

They were both filthy.

Hermione shrugged. "Hagrid's little brother helped us. So, what's the plan?"

Harry sighed. "We've wasted alot of time already. Sirius is probably a Controller by now. We have to get to London and fast."

"But how?" I asked. "I mean, we could morph but that still won't be very fast and anyways, how are you guys going to get there?"

"Well," said Jake, "We could take those."

I turned. Staring out at us from the gloom were several of the creatures Hagrid had called Thestrals.


	11. Trapped like Rats

**NOTES** - See? I told you I'd update sooner. I'll let this chapter speak for itself. I, despite my sincerest efforts, still own none of this.

* * *

**Jake**

After a hair-raising Thestral ride, we landed in an alley in London. Ron toppled immediately off his Thestral and landed on the pavement.

"Never again." he muttered. "Never, ever again..."

"There's the visitor's entrance." said Harry, pointing to an old phone booth.

We all glanced at each other, wondering how that was the entrance.

"Marco, don't you dare make even one Superman joke." said Rachel in response to Marco opening his mouth.

He glared at her. "You know, there are many people who appreciate my wit."

"Yes, well, when this is all over, you can go back and live with the Baboons."

"Ha. Ha. And also, Ha." said Marco. "And did I mention, ha?"

"Are they always like this before a mission?" Ron asked Cassie, Tobias and me.

"Pretty much." we all answered together.

Harry opened the door. "Come on." he urged.

We all piled into the phone-booth.

"You know," said Cassie, "My dad told me he did this once."

Harry reached his arm awkwardly around me and dialed a series of numbers.

"Welcome to the Ministry of Magic." said a voice that reminded me of the computer on Star Trek. "Please state your name and business."

Harry gave everyone's names and said that we were here to save someone.

"Thank you." said the voice. "Please take the badges and attach them to the front of your robes."

Hermione scooped the badges that slid out of the coin-return and passed them out dutifully.

I looked at mine. It had my name in gold letters with the words "Rescue Mission" below it.

"Visitors to the ministry, you are required to submit to a search and present your wand for registration at the security desk which is located at the far end of the Atrium."

"Fine!" barked Harry. "Can we please just get going?"

To my surprise, the phone booth began to sink into the ground. Marco started whistling the Get Smart theme.

"Marco, look down and see what part of your body my knee is closest to." said Rachel sweetly.

Marco stopped whistling very quickly.

A minute later, a chink of golden light appeared at our feet and began to grow quickly. I was able to see a large room with what appeared to be fire-places lining the walls. In the center was a large golden fountain depicting several creatures.

"The Ministry of Magic wishes you a pleasant evening." said the voice as the door opened and we all fell out on top of one another.

**Rachel**

As soon as we were up, we went into battle mode. I mused briefly on how funny the casual observer might find the sight of a tiger, a gorilla, a wolf, a grizzly bear, and a hawk following three kids with short sticks. We all got into an elevator which was, thankfully, much larger than the phone booth. Harry punched the number nine button.

Moments late, the doors slid back and the voice announced, "Level nine; Department of Mysteries."

We walked down an eerie hallway lined with torches where every scuffle sounded amplified.

(I've got a very bad feeling about this.) said Marco.

We came to the end of the hall and walked through a door into a circular room filled with more doors. Harry looked around uncertainly.

"In my dream there was only one door that I remember." he said.

Fortunately, we only went through one wrong door, which contained an odd room with a black curtain in the center, and tried another door which wouldn't open before we found the right one.

We found ourselves in a room as big as a cathedral filled with row upon row of shelves. On every shelf was a glittering glass orb.

(Beautiful.) muttered Cassie. I found I disagreed. I found the place to be highly creepy.

"It's Row 97...Or at least it was in my dream." Harry whispered.

(Be on guard and be quiet.) ordered Jake.

As we made our way as quietly as we could down the rows, the silence grew more and more ominous. Our minds danced with images of various horrible images of Hork Bajir or worse jumping out at us, blades flashing. But no Hork Bajir jumped out. Instead, something far worse happened. We all ground to a halt as we suddenly heard an unsteady clicking sound. It seemed to be coming from Row 97. It sounded just like hooves on a hard floor. Harry, Ron and Hermione all raised their wands and we spread out into formation as best we could.

An Andalite suddenly stumbled out and fell to the ground.

(Ax!) we all said together. Hermione rushed forward and began waving her wand over a deep wound in his side. It instantly began to mend.

"Ax, are you alright?" she asked.

He looked up at her and a wave of sadness passed over his face.

(Run...) he said.

Before we could process this,

FWAAP! FWAAP! FWAAP!

His tail struck like lightning and knocked the wands out of Harry, Ron and Hermione's hands. At that same moment, we heard several loud popping sounds and we found ourselves demorphing at top speed. He stood, his tail arching menacingly.

"It's a trap!" shouted Harry.

"You've figured that out, have you, Potter?" said a sneering voice.

We, now human, spun around. Standing behind us were six people in black robes with hideous skull masks pointing wands at us. Only the lead one was unmasked. He had long platinum-blond hair and a face that told me exactly who he was. Harry confirmed it.

"Lucius Malfoy."

(Get away from them!) snapped Ax, though he didn't move.

Lucius looked at him with an amused expression. "Ah yes, of course. The Imperius Curse only controls your body. I nearly forgot. You might have ruined everything. Oh well. No matter. The plan went ahead as expected."

(Prince Jake, I am sorry. I cannot control my body.) said Ax.

"How touching." said Lucius. "But I'm afraid you've outlived your usefulness. _Avada Kedavra_!"

Before we could so much as breathe, a bolt of green light struck Ax in the chest. He flew backwards into a shelf and crumpled. We all stared in shock. It couldn't be. Ax was faking...He couldn't be dead! With a scream only a hawk can deliver, Tobias took off, flying at Lucius.

"Tobias, no!" I shouted but it was too late.

"_Avada Kedavra!"_

His body dropped like a rock. I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. Tobias was so much more than just my friend. I had always thought it but I had never told him. I loved him. Three words I should have told him. Now, with two words, I never could. I felt like my life had crashed down around me.

(Two down and I didn't even have to lift a finger. Thanks, Lucius.)

We all turned back around suddenly. That had been a thought-speak voice, but it wasn't Visser Three. I knew that voice. It haunted my nightmares. In this war, there are things I have done that will be with me until the day I die. This was one of them.

The Death Eaters stepped aside to admit, what appeared to be, for all intents and purposes, a rat.

Of everything that had happened, this was the very worst. It all flew into my mind at once. We hadn't been beat by Visser Three. There were no Yeerks. All of this had been a setup.

I spoke the name of the Animorphs greatest failure and heaviest casualty of the entire war.

"David..."


	12. Fight and Flight

**NOTES **- I won't offer any excuses this time. I'm lazy. Busy, but lazy nonetheless. Hope this is worth the wait for you guys. I don't own jack.

**Ax**

_Earlier_

I awoke somewhere which I quickly discerned was not Hogwarts. I was in a large office, lined with moving pictures. Through a large window, I could see bright sunshine and birds fluttering by, despite the fact that my internal clock told me it was the evening. I also discovered to my shock and dismay that I had somehow demorphed. Even more to my dismay, I found I could not move even one muscle in my body.

"He is awake. Release him." said a stern voice.

"Minister, do you really think that is the best idea?"

"I will decide what is and is not a good idea." said the stern voice. "Release him but keep your wands trained on him."

I suddenly found that I could move again. I swivelled my stalk eyes around the room, taking in my surroundings. Standing by the door were three wizards, each with a wand trained on me. Sitting behind a desk on the opposite side of the room was a short man in a striped suit, scowling at me. Beside him was a young man with red hair, holding a note pad and a quill pen. "My name is Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic." said the man in the striped suit. "You are here to answer charges of conspiring against the Misistry of Magic. State your name for the record." But before I could answer, the door opened and a figure in a dark cloak entered. The three wizards by the door did not react other than to step aside to admit him.

"What is the meaning of this?" demanded Fudge irritably. "This is a private inquiry and-"

"Thank you, Minister," said a sneering voice from within the cloak, "but your services will no longer be required."

The Minister narrowed his eyes. "Lucius? How dare you speak to me like that! Avery, Macnair, Nott, escort Mr. Malfoy out of here at once!" The three Wizards by the door, instead of obeying, Trained their wands on the Minister. The red-haired boy jumped in front of him and drew his own wand, but he was sent flying into a wall by a jet of red light.

"I-I-I will have you all arrested for this t-treason!" Fudge stammered.

"As a matter of fact, you will not." said the man called Lucius. "In fact, after the Dark Lord arrives, I doubt your life will last much longer."

"T-the Dark Lord?" Fudge said, his face turning an unhealthy shade of white. "Y-you mean, H-he-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named?"

Lucius smiled and sent the Minister flying with a spell.

(Geeze that guy talks a lot. Glad that shut him up at least.)

I froze. I knew that voice all too well. To my dismay, a rat crawled up on Lucius' shoulder.

(David.) I hissed.

(Sorry, freak.) said David. (No time for pleasantries. Lucius, if you would.)

Lucius pointed his wand at me and shouted, "_Imperiate!"_

For the second time that evening, I found that I could not move.

(Better test it out.) said David. (Hop up and down.) All of a sudden, my legs began propelling me into the air over and over. I tried stopping it, but I had lost all control over my body.

David and the Wizards laughed. (Excellent.) said David. (Now, here's what you're going to do for us...)

A few hours later, it was all over. I tried to warn the Animorphs, but I was too late to stop my body from doing what it had been commanded to do.

(Prince Jake, I am sorry. I cannot control my body.) I said.

"How touching." said Lucius. "But I'm afraid you've outlived your usefulness. Avada Kedavra!"

A wave of green light swept over me and before I had a chance to even register what it meant, everything went very suddenly black.

**Harry**

I couldn't believe what was happening. Ax and Tobias...both dead. I'd known them for such a short time but in that time, all the Animorphs had become as great friends as Ron and Hermione. I wanted to tell myself that none of this was happening. This couldn't be how everything ended. But I knew that barring a miracle, nothing could save us.

Lucius Malfoy grinned like a little child on Christmas Morning. "My pleasure, David. After all, we couldn't have done it without your help."

"Who _is_ this?" demanded Hermoine, indicating the rat Rachel had called David.

David laughed in our heads. (You mean you never told them the story? To amuse them, you never told them how you turned me into part of your little team then trapped me in this form when I didn't want to do exactly what you said?)

Ron, Hermoine and I looked at the Animorphs. "What's he talking about?" I asked.

Jake couldn't quite seem to meet our eyes. Marco looked as if he wanted to explain but couldn't.

"It wasn't that simple." said Cassie quietly.

"We saved you!" screamed Rachel. "We stopped Yeerks from shoving a slug into your brain!"

David laughed coldly. (Only because I knew your little secret! But you couldn't kill me. Oh no. That would be wrong and immoral. So instead, you trapped me as a rat and abandoned me on a god-forsaken little rock where I could spend the rest of my life eating trash. And I would have if it wasn't for Wormtail.)

"Wormtail?" I exclaimed. Peter Pettigrew, otherwise known as Wormtail was a Wizard who had been a friend of my father's. But he had gone on to betray them to Voldemort and it was because of him that they were dead.

"Yes, Wormtail." said Malfoy. "He had botched an assignment in America that the Dark Lord gave him. Fearing his wrath, he turned into a rat and ran away."

"And that's how he met you." I finished.

"Very good, Potter." Malfoy sneered. "Naturally, the wretch couldn't stay away from the Dark Lord for long. He soon returned with David."

"David, I can't believe even you would be low enough to side with these dirtbags." said Marco.

David laughed. (Dirtbags? Funny coming from you. They're giving me what I want the most. I get to watch you die, I get to help me free my family from the Yeerks...and I get to be human again.)

We all stared at him.

"Are you an idiot?" asked Rachel incredulously. "They can't turn you back into a human."

"David, listen to me." I said. "They're only using you. They're going to kill you once that usefulness has run out."

(Oh, I don't think so, scar boy.) said David. (They've already fulfilled one part of their bargain. Watch.)

At first, nothing happened. Then, slowly, the rat began to grow and before long, a mean-looking boy wearing the same skin-tight morphing outfits as the Animorphs stood in its place. One of the Death Eaters handed him a robe which he gladly donned.

Jake gasped. "But...that's-"

"Impossible?" finished David. "I thought so too. But, as you saw when you walked into our trap, the same spell that reverses the Animagus transformation also reverses morphing. That includes those who are trapped. Now, you are all going to die but we'll save that until Lord Voldemort arrives. For now, Potter, come this way. And...Rachel I think. Lestrange, you come with us. The rest of you get to stay here. Malfoy, keep an eye on them. If they escape-"

"Mind your tongue, boy!" snapped Malfoy. "I do NOT take orders from you."

David turned slowly towards him, smiling evilly. "Didn't anyone tell you? If they escape, Lord Voldemort is going to hold YOU personally responsible. And he's going to let me personally end your life...and wife's...and your son's. So don't screw up. Okay?" Lucius sneered at him but obeyed, motioning the other Death Eaters to surround Ron, Hermione and the other Animorphs.

David took Rachel and me down row 97, stopping somewhere near the center.

"Here it is." he said, pointing at one of the glowing orbs on the shelf. Below it was affixed a label with a date some sixteen years earlier. And below that,

_S.P.T. to A.P.W.B.D.  
Dark Lord  
and (?) Harry Potter_

"Now, I'm told that this is a prophecy." said David. "I don't know the details and quite frankly, I don't give a...well...rat's ass. But the deal I made with Voldemort was that I would get him this prophecy."

"And in return?" I demanded sharply.

David smirked and glanced at Rachel. "I think you've already figured that out. Now, all you have to do is to grab it."

I just stared at him.

"Why don't you get it yourself. Are your fingers broken or something?" sneered Rachel, earning her a backhand across the mouth from David.

"I can't tell you how long I've waited to do that." he said. "But since you ask, I can't take it because for some reason only Potter can. Like I said, I don't know why and I don't care. But, Potter, I'll make a deal with you. You get me that prophecy and I'll make sure your two friends make it out alive. Voldemort doesn't care about them. He just wants you and that prophecy and I just want the Ani-freaks." Slowly, my hand reached up. "That's it." hissed David. "Just take it."

"Harry, no!" shouted Rachel, earning her another backhand from David. Almost in slow motion, my fingers closed around the glass sphere. I expected it to be cold, but it instead felt as if it had been sitting outside in the sun for hours. With one quick motion, I pulled it down from the shelf.

"Good!" he cheered. Now, hand it to me slowly."

At that moment, a plan formed in my mind. It was desperate and maybe even a little stupid, but according to the Animorphs, those were the kind that tended to work best. I looked at Rachel and said very sincerely, "Sorry."

**Rachel**

I was suddenly shoved into David and we fell into an unceremonious heap on top of Lestrange. Before we could have a chance to untangle ourselves, Harry made a dash for the end of the row.

Lestrange managed to free her wand arm and pointed it at Harry, shouting "Avada Kedavra!" A wave of green light missed Harry by inches as he ducked around the shelf.

"HOLD YOUR FIRE!" screamed David. "IF THE PROPHECY IS LOST, VOLDEMORT IS GOING TO KILL ALL OF US!"

"So, what kind of prophecy is this?" Harry called.

"You jest." sneered Lestrange.

"Nope. No jesting here. How come Voldemort wants it so bad?"

"DO NOT DARE SPEAK HIS NAME!" Lestrange screamed.

"Shut up!" David yelled at her. "Potter, stop being an idiot. Bring the prophecy back or I'll have to start killing your friends one-by-one."

Harry suddenly stepped around the shelf to face David. "Alright. Have it your way." He drew back his arm and threw the glass orb high into the air and over our heads.

"CATCH IT!" screamed David, running after it, followed by Lestrange.

"Rachel, run!" Harry yelled.

He didn't have to ask me twice. We took off down the rows, pursued by David and Lestrange's enraged cries. We ducked into row 92 to catch our breath.

"I can't believe you did that!" I said. "That prophecy was about you! Didn't you want to hear it?"

"I still will." said Harry, reaching into his jacket and pulling out a glowing sphere.

I blinked. "You threw them a decoy." Harry nodded proudly. "Well," I said, fixing a very Professor McGonagall-like look on my face, "That was incredibly foolish and ill-conceived! Harry...You would have made a spectacular Animorph."

He grinned. "Come on. Let's go rescue the others."


	13. A Conspiracy Unmasked

**NOTES** - I know. I know. You don't have to say it. I did have every intention of releasing this chapter sooner, but I really have been very busy with school and work. I do promise you that this story WILL be finished. So stay with me a while longer. :)

As for a question raised, someone asked about Harry having the decoy prophecy and how he couldn't have taken it unless it was about him. That would have been a rather egregious oversight on my part, wouldn't it:P I guess you'll just have to wait and see how that happened.

Over 200 reviews...Guys and gals, I am truly overwhelmed. This is simply amazing. Thank you all. Please continue to read and review.

As ever, I don't own jack.

* * *

**Jake**

David returned, looking very irate, but clutching a prophecy. Lestrange was only a few steps behind and looking equally sour. I wondered if Harry and Rachel had managed to escape or if David had just killed them outright.

"Take care of them quickly." snapped David. "I'm going to go give Voldemort his precious prophecy." He started to turn away, but then stopped and looked back ."Sorry I can't stay and watch you all die. But I-"

"_Stupefy!"_

A red jet of light suddenly slammed into Malfoy and he went flying over our heads and landed in a heap. We could see three people in robes standing in the room's entrance, launching spells. "They've brought backup!" screamed Lestrange. The Death Eaters scattered in all directions and even David turned to run, but a fist suddenly connected with his jaw and he went down like a sack of bricks. The Prophecy he carried rolled out of his hands and under a shelf.

"I can't tell you how long I've waited to do THAT." said Rachel savagely. Harry also emerged from behind the shelves. He went over to Malfoy and retrieved his, Ron's and Hermione's wands.

"What's going on?" I asked. "Who's attacking the Death Eaters?"

"Dunno." said Harry. "As long as they're not attacking us."

"Harry!" The attacking Wizards were running towards us and we could see now who they were.

"Ginny Neville! Luna!" Hermoine exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Rescuing you, it looks like." said Neville.

"We followed you all here, but it took us a little while to figure out the room with all the doors." said Ginny.

(Ow. Ow. Seriously, ow.)

We all gasped as a red-tailed hawk fluttered weakly out from one of the rows. "Tobias!" Rachel sobbed and scooped him up in her arms.

(Urk! Little birdie bones bending, Rachel.)

She gave a watery laugh and eased up on him.

"But how?" asked Ron. "Malfoy hit you with the killing curse!"

(Who knows.) said Tobias. (But I just...Hey, what about Ax?)

(I am intact.) said a sheepish thoughtspeak voice.

"Ax? Where are you? Why don't you come out?" I asked.

(I...I am ashamed, Prince Jake.) he responded. (I betrayed all of you. I was too weak to resist Lucius Malfoy's control over me.)

"Ax, it's alright." said Hermione. "None of us could have in your place. That's what the Imperius Curse does to you."

"Except Harry." said Ron. "He did it with Moody fourth-Oof!" Hermione had elbowed him sharply in the ribs.

"Come on out, Ax." I said. "We've still got a fight ahead of us. You'll have plenty of opportunities to make it up."

There was no answer for a moment, but then Ax stepped out. (Very well, Prince Jake.) he said.

I smiled. "Don't call me 'Prince.'"

(Yes, Prince Jake.)

Marco had been staring at Ginny, Neville and Luna with his arms crossed throughout it all. "You three don't look the least bit surprised about anything you're seeing." he said suspiciously.

Luna blinked slowly at him and Neville suddenly looked very interested in his feet. Ginny just put her hands on her hips and looked defiant.

Harry crossed his arms in a mirror image of Marco. "You've been spying on us, haven't you? And I don't just mean today."

Neville nodded glumly. "Yeah. We have."

"It was Fred and George's idea." Ginny said. "They'd been doing it for a while and they told us to pick it up after they left Hogwarts."

"Exactly how much do you know?" I asked.

"Well..." said Neville, "We know that you're not really Wizards, and that you can turn into animals and that you're looking for something called Yeerks...And I know that he's not really an American Centaur." he added, pointing at Ax.

Harry, Ron and Hermione all raised eyebrows at us. "'American Centaur?'" Harry asked.

"Uh...We'll explain later." said Marco.

"Hey, where's David?" asked Cassie suddenly.

We looked around to where David had lain unconscious, but he was gone. "Come on." I said. "We have to get out of here."

We all ran for the exit and emerged out into the Hall of Doors. Just in time, too. Behind me, someone shouted _"Avada Kedavra!"_ Luckily, it was poorly aimed and flew over my shoulder. We all piled out of the door and Hermione sealed it.

"It won't take them long to get it open." she said.

"Split up!" I ordered. "Animorphs, battle morphs when you get a chance!"

**Marco**

I went with Ginny and Ron through one door, going into my Gorilla morph as I went.

(Woah...) I said in awe. All around us floated planets, with a burning star at the center. It felt like I was just floating out in space. I half-expected to see the _Enterprise_ go zooming by. I thought about imitating Captain Picard for a moment, but decided that it would probably be lost on the Wizards.

"What d'you suppose this place is for?" asked Ron.

(Hey, you're the Wizard.) I said.

Suddenly, a blast struck Ron in the back and he crumpled to the floor. Ginny whirled with her wand ready and shouted, _"Expelliarmus!"_ The wand flew out of the hand of the Death Eater who had managed to sneak in behind us, but he wasn't so easily beaten. He lunged forward and knocked Ginny's wand out of her hand before she could fire off another spell. He then reached for her throat, but she kneed him right where no man wants to be kneed. I have to hand it to the guy, though. He still wasn't ready to give up. As Ginny tried to run, he grabbed her ankle. I heard and distinct snapping sound and she fell with a small cry.

(Hey, pal, over here!) I shouted.

He looked up and snarled "Filthy muggle!"

(Now that's not very nice.) I said, giving one of Jupiter's moons a casual swat as it passed by me. The planetoid flew across the room at something resembling terminal velocity and struck the Death Eater square in the head. Needless to say, he didn't get back up.

I went over to where Ginny was cradling her ankle. (Are you alright?) I asked.

She nodded. "Check on Ron. They hit him with some kind of curse."

Suddenly, Ron started giggling. He was laying flat on his back and staring up at a planet that was passing overhead, and he was giggling like a madman.

(Uh...Ron?)

"I can see Uranus!" he said gleefully.

(Oh boy...) I groaned.

**Harry**

Jake, Hermione and I ran into another room and Hermione sealed the door. The room was filled with desks. Lining the walls were glass cases with strange items inside. One held an egg that, as we watched, hatched to reveal a chick. But then as the tiny animal emerged, time seemed to flow backwards, and it was soon a whole egg again. Another case held what I recognized as Time-Turners.

(Come on.) said Jake in his tiger morph. (We'll make for that door on the far wall.)

Suddenly, we heard voices outside the door we had come through. I recognized Lucius Malfoy's voice saying, "Everyone split up! Find them! But don't kill Potter!"

(Duck!) Jake said and we all dove underneath desks as the door flew open.

A large Death Eater passed by me slowly. I aimed my wand at his chest and said, _"Stupefy!"_ He was down before he could even react. Hermione jumped out of hiding and aimed her wand. The other Death Eater was faster than his friend, however. He jumped out of the way, aimed his wand at Hermione and shouted, _"Avada-"_ but was cut off as an orange and black blur slammed him to the floor. Unfortunately, he managed to hold onto his wand and he sent Jake flying with a quick _Stupefy_ spell. But as he stood, Hermione hit him with a spell of her own and he flew backwards into the case with the egg inside. I expected the case to shatter, but instead, the Death Eater's head sank straight through. Then, it got really weird. As we watched, his head began shrinking and his hair began receding, until it was no longer a man's head, but a baby's. "It's...time." said Hermione. The Death Eater pulled himself out of the case and began stumbling around the room. The baby's mouth opened and let out a lusty wail.

I aimed my wand at him, but Hermione grabbed me and forced my arm down. "Stop!" she said sharply. "It's a baby. You can't hurt it."

(Come on. We have to get out of here before more of them show up.) Jake said.

We turned to run, but suddenly, there was a low growl from the direction of the door. We spun to see a huge lion standing there, switching it's tail. Flanking him were two more Death Eaters.

(You two get Potter.) David said. (The Animorph is mine.)

Jake looked over his shoulder at us and said, (Run.)

I wanted to protest, but there was a tone in his voice that would allow for no argument. So I grabbed Hermione and ran. As spells whizzed by us, I threw Hermione towards a slightly open door and ran in after her. She slammed the door and turned her wand on it. However, before she could utter the spell, the door flew open again and the two Death Eaters came hurtling inside. "_IMPEDIMENTA!"_ they both shouted. Hermione and I flew in opposite directions. My head struck a wall and she slammed into a book case. I was too dazed to react for a moment, as one of the Death Eaters aimed his wand at Hermione and opened his mouth, but she reacted more quickly and shouted, _"Silencio!"_ The man's mouth worked wordlessly for a moment before he was shoved aside by his companion. By then, I had my wits about me and I stopped him with _Petrificus Totalus._ The silenced Death Eater sneered at Hermione and waved his wand at her in a slashing motion. A whip of purple light flame struck her in the chest and she fell with a small gasp. Before he could do anything else, I hit him with _Petrificus Totalus._

My heart in my throat, I crawled over to Hermione. _Don't let her be dead. Don't let her be dead._ I prayed. A grabbed her wrist and felt it. For a moment, there was nothing, but then I found a weak pulse. I almost collapsed for sheer joy.

At the sounds of footsteps, I whirled and aimed my wand, but I found Neville and Rachel in her Bear morph standing in the doorway. Tobias, too, sat on her shoulder. They were battered, but alive. Neville seemed the worst off. He was clutching his nose and blood leaked out from between his fingers.

(Harry, she isn't...) Tobias began.

"She's alive." I said. "But she's hurt. Are you alright?"

"Deaf Eader kicked me in da face an broke by wand." Neville said, his words muddled. "By Gran's going do kill be. Dat was by dad's old wand."

(We've got to get out of here.) said Rachel. (More Death Eaters will be coming.)

"What about Jake and David?" I asked. "Are they still out there?"

(We didn't see them.) said Tobias.

I grabbed Hermione's wand and handed it to Neville. "Here. You'll need it more than she will at the moment. Take Hermione and get out of here. I'm going to find the others."

"Den we're coming doo." said Neville. "I'll carry Herbione. You're a bedder fighder den be anyways."

I nodded, feeling a swell of gratitude at his loyalty and bravery. Maybe he was never going to be a tremendously skilled Wizard, but I knew he was going to be a great one nonetheless. I helped Neville get Hermione over his shoulder and then drew my wand.

"Come on." I said. "Time to end this."


End file.
